Thank you, Mr. Chair.

It's a pleasure to be here today to talk about these issues.

As this committee has emphasized, the ongoing energy transition presents both opportunities and challenges, and will require the transformation of Canadian industries and the labour market. The government recognizes the need to drive this transformation and to help workers and communities adapt to it, and the work of this committee will be very helpful.

In thinking about these issues, it may be helpful to distinguish three broad objectives.

First, we have a variety of policy measures designed to reduce the use in Canada, by individuals, businesses and industries, of emitting fuel. The widespread use of clean electricity and other forms of clean energy will be foundational for achieving a net-zero emissions economy by 2050.

Second, we also have a variety of policy measures designed to reduce the emissions from the production of carbon-based fuels. Even as Canada reduces its own demand for oil and gas, there is going to be continued demand by other countries, so to the extent that Canadian companies respond to that demand, we need to ensure they produce that fuel as cleanly as possible.

Third, the government is supporting the development of clean energy and associated technologies and components throughout the supply chain, both to support the domestic energy transition and to take advantage of the growing global demand for clean energy.

These goals are being supported by the all-of-government approach, described by my colleagues, with a wide range of measures.

I’ll now speak for a moment about our approach to regulations.

While we appreciate the importance of regulatory stability for attracting investment, we are also working in an unprecedented situation in which there is a need to drive further greenhouse gas reductions and to build the regulatory and policy foundation for the clean energy transition. In this fluid context, we are trying to operate in a way that is as transparent as possible, signalling clearly the various new regulatory measures that we are developing and engaging extensively to ensure that these regulations are well designed and can provide a durable basis for long-term investments.

I’d like to reassure the committee that our work to decide when to regulate, how to target regulations and what requirements to include is informed by the considerations you've identified. The regulatory impact analysis statements that accompany every federal regulation, for example, provide detailed information about technical and economic feasibility, regional employment and other economic impacts—all factors that we consider throughout the development of all our regulations.

To attract investment in clean energy projects, the government also recognizes the need to make project approvals as predictable and efficient as possible. These objectives are the focus of the budget 2023 commitment to improve the efficiency of the federal impact assessment and permitting processes for major projects in Canada.

I look forward to your questions and to the results of your important work.

Thank you.