Justice committee  I'm happy to respond to that question. Thank you. The board is committed to ensuring that victims' voices are heard, their rights are respected and there's the opportunity to participate. However, as you point out, as a result of limited access to CSC institutions at the outset of the pandemic and throughout, depending on the situation in the communities in terms of transmission, PBC hearings were conducted remotely.

Justice committee  From the.... Oh, I'm sorry.

Justice committee  I would add that for the Parole Board, as well, the focus is on outreach to those groups to ensure that folks are aware of the information services and the opportunity to participate from the Parole Board perspective. We have a working group on diversity and systemic racism, and this is part of the considerations that this group has under way.

Justice committee  To follow on that, from the perspective of the Parole Board of Canada, if I recall correctly, you asked about our PBC committee on victims, so I'd like to provide a little bit on that. This committee provides information and insight directly to the chairperson on matters of policy and programs, to enhance the openness of the board through the timely exchange of information with victims on activities undertaken by the board that could impact victims.

Justice committee  If I can respond to the question—

Justice committee  —I would say that throughout the pandemic the Parole Board of Canada has ensured that we've respected the legislative rights of our victims. In terms of participation, victims have been able to submit statements and to have the statements considered by board members. In respect of hearings where a victim statement was to be read, initially in the pandemic, in the early days, it was a challenging time technologically, I think for us and for others.

Justice committee  I would acknowledge that there is a great deal of importance in ensuring that victims are able to receive the support and information that they require throughout the hearing process. Our regional communication officers are there to work with victims, to provide information and answer questions throughout the entire hearing process and, in addition, to refer any victims who are experiencing trauma, for example, to appropriate services.

Justice committee  Thank you. I would just like to begin by saying that the Parole Board is definitely committed to openness and transparency in the way we provide information, and we ensure the participation of victims in respect of the conditional release process. In terms of information that registered victims can receive, we may end up touching on this a little bit more later through the course of the meeting, but there is a victims portal in place where registered victims can access a variety of information.