Citizenship and Immigration committee  No, I'm not. Obviously, because we are part of the same portfolio and there are certain practical matters we have to deal with, we have our contacts at CBSA and CIC. So if something comes to our attention we certainly know at the regional level where to send those complaints or that information.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  I should clarify that. Although things will change under the new Balanced Refugee Reform Act, the IRB is not responsible for PRA decisions.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  We don't have a whistleblower policy per se. Maybe we'd better backtrack, because I want to distinguish between what happens in the refugee protection division and other divisions. The reason I say that is because when things come to our attention in the refugee protection division, these are private, closed hearings.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  I wouldn't feel comfortable commenting on that.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Yes, I will wind up. Maybe I'll just wind up by saying this in conclusion. The IRB has a strong interest in measures that would assure competent representation and preserve the integrity of proceedings before the board. Therefore the board supports measures that would strengthen the regulation of counsel who appear for a fee in immigration and refugee matters.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Thank you. Good afternoon. Thank you, Chairman and members of the committee. As you said, I'm Sylvia Cox-Duquette and I'm the senior general counsel for the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. I want to thank you for your invitation to appear before you today. I thought I would talk about the IRB's policy for handling complaints regarding unauthorized paid representatives--in other words, those persons who are targeted by this new bill.