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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau struck an apologetic note on Tuesday afternoon as he explained his controversial remarks about the oilsands, but took a combative tone in defending his government’s record in the evening at a raucous town hall at the University of Calgary.

The Calgary town hall, the eighth in a series of events across Canada aimed at connecting Trudeau with Canadians, followed the end of a two-day cabinet retreat held at the Fairmont Palliser hotel.

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The interactions with the public have come with a few bumpy moments for the prime minister, and earlier in the day he admitted he had messed up with a comment at an Ontario town hall where he talked about phasing out the oilsands.

At the U of C, the crowd of more than 1,700 was mainly young and mostly friendly, though Trudeau faced boos mixed in among the cheers as well as persistent catcalls from a handful of those in attendance.

But Trudeau said he was committed to Calgary, noting he had been to the city five times since he became prime minister in 2015.