In relationships, trust is king. Nowhere has this been more apparent in Canadian politics recently than with pipelines. The overtly pro-fossil fuel policies of the Harper government weakened and politicized the National Energy Board, the institution charged with conducting neutral public hearings on proposed pipelines. Predictably, Canadians’ trust in the board cratered. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberals seized on this loss of trust in their successful election campaign. They promised to restore faith in both environmental assessments generally, and the National Energy Board in particular.