Thank you, Mr. Chair.
As a consequence of the decision, COSEWIC's capacity to assess the status of amphibians in Canada has been reduced—and as a reminder, amphibians are one of the world's most threatened groups of vertebrates.
The minister's decision sets a precedent for determining membership on COSEWIC, which may compromise the real or perceived ability of each member to exercise their discretion in an independent manner, in accordance with subsection 16(6). If so, this will negatively influence COSEWIC's ability to fulfill its legislated responsibility to assess species at risk independently of the consequences of its assessments. Any action that erodes the knowledge base of COSEWIC will erode the confidence decision-makers and society have in the integrity of the advice, weakening the ability of governments to fulfill national and international obligations to protect, conserve, and recover biodiversity.
This leads me to COSEWIC's second recommendation, which is that subsection 16(1) of SARA be modified to include one new word—COSEWIC—and to read:
COSEWIC is to be composed of members appointed by the Minister after consultation with the Canadian Endangered Species Conservation Council, COSEWIC, and with any experts and expert bodies, such as the Royal Society of Canada, that the Minister considers to have relevant expertise.
Our recommendation, then, is that SARA be amended such that COSEWIC be legislatively recognized as one of the bodies with whom the minister consults prior to issuing ministerial appointments to COSEWIC. The proposed amendment would allow the minister to be fully informed of the potential short-term and long-term consequences associated with any membership decision that involves the rejection of COSEWIC's advice.
Thank you for your attention. That is the end of my verbal presentation.