Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to all the witnesses for being here today. It is very important for us to hear what they have to say, especially given that they have all played a role in the studies that have been done and in the recommendations that have been made.
I will start with the representatives of the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs.
First of all, I would like to thank you very much for the work that you do in general. I know that all Canadians have a high level of admiration for firefighters, particularly given that 80% are volunteer firefighters. I would like to thank you for that.
Among the questions that are being asked are questions on the Emergency Response Assistance Plans. These plans were introduced following a recommendation from the Transportation Safety Board. We know that none existed previously, as you said. This is a new plan that has been put forward.
I would like it if you could explain what is happening in concrete terms. We will not talk about the tragedy of Lac-Mégantic and of what could have been different if there had been a plan. Instead, let us look towards the future. How will we intervene directly? Concretely, what does this emergency response plan do?