Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Winnipeg North for his question. It is a very important one.
The concept of social licence is fundamental to the first nations, which are involved in these processes, but often not as a partner. More often than not, they are pressured on the projects, whether it is political pressure or pressure from the companies.
As I mentioned in my speech, I also agree that the oil and gas industry is hugely important to Canada's economy. This is evident not only in the west but also all across Canada. I was pleased to see that the bill included the two primary means of transportation: pipelines and rail transportation. In both cases we need regulations to keep everyone safe and to hold the companies involved accountable, whether we are talking about pipeline operators or, in the case of rail transportation, rail operators.
We know that the government introduced another bill to make companies more accountable. We will study its merits, as we are currently studying the merits of the provisions to increase the accountability of pipeline operators. We will also study the merits of the provisions for the environment and for landowners who could be affected by a spill and who have concerns.