Information & Ethics committee  I do it every day, but it's not easy. From time to time, I'm tempted to mix the two, but that's not allowed. We always need to be mindful of that. As a judge, I rendered a number of judgments and I had to think about the impact my personal views might or might not have. I don't believe they got in the way.

Information & Ethics committee  Please ask me that question in six months.

Information & Ethics committee  If all the position required was enforcing the law and rendering judgments, it would be easy to find someone. Obviously, it must be said that there's political involvement. The decisions we make naturally have a political impact and affect people's reputations. We live in the age of social media, where everything is always exaggerated.

Information & Ethics committee  Yes, it has to be legal, but at the same time we mustn't forget the purpose. If the law is difficult to enforce, you can't respect the spirit of the law, and you have to find a solution that better reflects reality.

Information & Ethics committee  No. I was asked to take over this position for only six months, and I said I was prepared to do so for six months. We didn't discuss what would happen after that period.

Information & Ethics committee  Frankly, I haven't thought about that. I've only been on the job for two weeks. I'm still in the process of understanding my role and getting the facts.

Information & Ethics committee  Frankly, no. I think it's a very interesting position. It's just a matter of interest. You need someone with a lot of experience. It's not for someone who is just starting their career. You need a little experience in the government realm.

Information & Ethics committee  No. I think I have the skills. I have experience and I'm very interested in the position. I've spent most of my working life in government. This is an area that interests me and that I understand. I was told there was an issue and the position had to be filled. So I was asked if I would be willing to take the position for six months, and I agreed to do it.

Information & Ethics committee  It started on September 3.

Information & Ethics committee  Look here: Just because there was no commissioner, that doesn't mean that work didn't go on. If something is referred to us, obviously we look at it. We do preliminaries, and then a decision is made on whether there should be an investigation or not. Once there is an investigation, obviously it becomes one.

Information & Ethics committee  That's correct.

Information & Ethics committee  In April, I believe, I was asked whether I would be willing to accept a position like this. I said yes, but I was going on a cruise with my wife for 40 days, so I would be ready to discuss it when I got back. We got back at the end of June. They called me to see if I was still willing to accept the position.

Information & Ethics committee  I have 39 years of experience in government. I've always worked for the government. I've been involved in the development, drafting, implementation and enforcement of legislation. Finally, as a judge, I've rendered decisions on laws that were overbroad and proposed corrections to laws containing errors.

Information & Ethics committee  That's right. You say it more elegantly than I did.

Information & Ethics committee  Thank you for the question, and thank you for sending me in advance a letter of your concerns. Let's start from the beginning. We don't approve travel. There is no provision in the act. We don't do that. What we do is approve.... If somebody receives a gratuity or a gift, he or she can come to us and ask, “Is this okay or do I have conflict of interest?”