Thank you.
To conclude our presentation, I will quickly go over the last point, which pertains to planning, and to the role of the commissioner of the environment and sustainable development and of the government. It mainly concerns lessons one, six and eight.
Essentially, lesson one of the report tells us that all levels of government must work together, which requires planning and coordination. Lesson six is among the most valuable ones, as it talks about the need to set ambitious targets, but also about achieving them. Finally lesson eight talks about the importance of long–term planning.
This rarely happens when I appear before a parliamentary committee, but I must say that I am optimistic this time. Why? Because Bill C‑12 on achieving net–zero emissions by 2050 received royal assent on June 29, 2021. We are here talking about a piece of legislation on Canada's climate responsibility, something that has been missing over the past 30 years.
More specifically, “the purpose of this Act is to require the setting of national targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions based on the best scientific information available and to promote transparency, accountability and immediate and ambitious action in relation to achieving those targets”.
The Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act asks the minister of the environment to set targets and to plan and implement measures to achieve them. We think that is a fairly good response to the concerns raised in the commissioner's report.
Far be it from me to say that the act is perfect. There is room for improvement, and the commissioner has a role to play in that regard.
On January 25, the commissioner received a letter cosigned by four environmental organizations, including ours, about his role in implementing this act. This will help ensure that the future assessment report on measures we will read in 2050—so in 30 years—will consist of lessons learned in achieving net–zero emissions, and not of lessons learned from what we will not have done.
Under the—