Government Operations committee  I have no evidence to point to about whether there was favouritism involved. One of the best arrangements for contracting is to leave it at the professional public service level to make those kinds of judgments so that there isn't micromanagement by ministers or direct involvem

Government Operations committee  Yes, I am concerned about the growing use of consultants to do core functions of government, such as policy advisory work and, in particular, any application of policy. That belongs in the hands of the public service. Other countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, have embar

Government Operations committee  One of the problems for outside observers like me—and for members of Parliament, I would say—is that the most interesting parts of the decision-making process are cloaked in confidentiality and secrecy. You really can't see the main decision-making point. I would observe, based

Government Operations committee  No. As per my disclaimer at the start, I have none.

Government Operations committee  No.

Government Operations committee  No.

Government Operations committee  Correct.

Government Operations committee  Okay.

Government Operations committee  Okay. I suggest that there are some criteria, but they're generally quite vague, and certain activities should not be candidates for outsourcing. Diminished policy capacity within the public service and a lack of confidence in the willingness of senior public servants to speak t

Government Operations committee  Thank you for the opportunity. I read and listened to the testimony before this committee, but I don't have specialized knowledge about the McKinsey case. Therefore, my remarks will necessarily be rather general in nature. I encourage the committee to study the topic of contract

Procedure and House Affairs committee  It will help cure your insomnia.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I didn't say that very well. Let me clarify. Elections Canada can't get into the business of exhorting people to get out and vote. They can tell them what the requirements for voting are, how to vote, and the convenience factor about alternative ways of voting, such as voting fr

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Yes. If you read my brief, you'll see that my compliments go beyond simply what I have said today. I recognize that you did an extensive review and three reports and heard from the acting CEO and maybe Mr. Mayrand before that, so I know you've studied this. That's why I thought

Procedure and House Affairs committee  We're trying to do a great deal in this bill. Traditionally, reform to election law has been done incrementally, ideally on the basis of as much all-party consensus as possible. In recent years, we've had partisan entanglements over election law reforms, because maybe we've tri

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Yes, I know, but that—