Fisheries committee  I'm sorry?

Fisheries committee  I think the premise and some of the science around this needs to be further developed, because all the tools and activities we have done to date have had an impact, up to a point. Now we have to look at additional and more innovative ways of dealing with this. I think the industry investments we are supporting with ACOA are in fact to help industry purchase and develop tools to cope with this invasive species, which is not easily eradicated.

Fisheries committee  The Commissioner and the Minister have ordered an investigation that will be conducted by an independent investigator. This will be a Coast Guard investigation. We have undertaken to review the incident and all of our procedures and to ask this independent investigator—and independence is important in this case—to determine if our policies and procedures need to be changed.

Fisheries committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm delighted to be here again today. As you indicated, I am accompanied today by several departmental officials who will be able to help me answer your questions. I'll just spend a few minutes introducing the colleagues we have with us: the associate deputy minister, Claire Dansereau, whom you've had the opportunity to meet a number of times now; George Da Pont, the Commissioner of the Canadian Coast Guard; Cal Hegge, assistant deputy minister of human resources and corporate services; Mr.

Public Accounts committee  I will be very brief, Mr. Chair. I have two comments before I go into the closing remarks. The first is that one of the members requested the regional breakdown in the business plan, and it is actually on page 66, so that the costs, the regional spread, are there. With regard to the lighthouses and their divestiture, I believe there is a bill that will be going to the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans with regard to lighthouse divestitures and heritage protection as well.

Public Accounts committee  The operating budget is also being looked at, at the moment, and we're building a business case for that. We do not want to, as we have done in the past, go all out and do all kinds of business cases that are half-baked. We want to do solid cases and bring them when they're ready and present them to the board, and to work with the secretariat on those cases.

Public Accounts committee  If I may, Mr. Chair, I think Mr. Da Pont did initiate such a request. Fisheries and Oceans and the coast guard received an amount of $99 million from the Treasury Board because we did put the business case to the board on capital. That was the core element, as indicated by the Auditor General.

Public Accounts committee  It concerns the purchase of a vessel on the west coast.

Public Accounts committee  Of all of the purchases that we are currently involved with, the first process should cover the first 12. The call for tenders was posted, and we have received bids. This call for tenders includes specifications for the construction of 12 ships. Therefore, if there is a specific case...

Public Accounts committee  All right, now I understand what you are trying to say. The calls for tenders are partly based on plans and specifications and partly on performance aspects. In fact, we based them on a design that had already been approved. It is not as though we rewrote the ships' specifications.

Public Accounts committee  Yes, Mr. Chairman. I could probably give you some order of magnitude.

Public Accounts committee  Yes, we could certainly do that.

Public Accounts committee  As the accounting officer, I will take the responsibility for that. As Mr. Da Pont said, it's not an excuse. There is work under way on every one of these. There is significant work under way. As we said at the outset, we have noted that the progress, as indicated by the Auditor General, is not satisfactory, but it's not that no work has taken place.

Public Accounts committee  I would agree, Mr. Chair, that is the case. However, I would also point out to the members of the committee that we have tabled a business plan. We have indicated our status report against that business plan, and we have been very clear about the areas we have met. One of the comments the Auditor General made to us, very rightly--and as Mr.

Public Accounts committee  The coast guard, Mr. Chair, is in fact a special operating agency.