Public Accounts committee  I think Assistant Commissioner Spice said it very eloquently: it is all about the leadership at the top. It is the integrity of the people who are there. I can't tell you today that the policies have changed; they haven't. But we are reviewing them right now. I realize that is probably not the answer you would like; however, this is an ongoing process.

Public Accounts committee  Things would be dealt with, sir.

Public Accounts committee  First, as Assistant Commissioner Spice (Retired) said, there is the will at the senior executive level to deal with the issues. I have the commitment that we are prepared as an organization to do so. We have learned from our experiences, and we are prepared to deal with the issues.

Public Accounts committee  I don't believe my role is to protect the RCMP. My role is to bring forth issues and wrongdoings that are brought to my attention. I'm not here for the organization; I'm here to make sure behaviour is ethical and that we do the right thing. That's my role in this job. Perhaps sometimes the news I bring is not the news that people want to hear, but this is the role that I have to play.

Public Accounts committee  Sir, we have opportunities to learn from experiences. I take note of Mr. Brown and the findings in his report on culture. We are reviewing both our formal and informal systems to ensure that they're aligned to provide a culture based on ethical behaviour. I think it all goes to values.

Public Accounts committee  First, the act came into effect in 2007. As you heard me say at the beginning of my remarks, the first thing I did was to staff my office. At present, we are studying all the policies. We are working with other government organizations to find out what their policies are and how we can ensure...

Public Accounts committee  The work is ongoing, sir. I have been in the position for five months, and we are working with different policy centres as well as different organizations to ensure these gaps are addressed. If you recall, on April 25, former Commissioner Beverley Busson stated to this committee that we would have an outreach initiative.

Public Accounts committee  First of all, sir, I think the RCMP's SRR program is a very good program, which we fully support. The Office of the Ethics Advisor is working very closely now with the SRR program. With regard to the reprisal issue and coming forward, I am the senior officer for the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act.

Public Accounts committee  With regard to your first point, sir, I would like to clarify. I have not been given any special powers. The Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act is the act we work under; however, we are working right now at revising some of our policies. We are working with the public sector integrity commissioner's office as well as the SRR program, the RCMP legal services, and the professional standards and external review directorate.

Public Accounts committee  Mr. Chairman, thank you for inviting me here today to assist the committee in its ongoing work related to the RCMP pension and insurance plans. I would like to give the members of the committee a very brief overview of my previous professional involvement and of my present role as RCMP Ethics Advisor.