Thank you, Mr. Chair.
First, I'd like to say that I appreciate Ms. Simson's suggestion that she would entertain a tabling of her motion to allow the committee to request a further response from the minister. I think that's constructive.
The other thing I want to point out is that I agree with the comments Mr. Wrzesnewskyj has made in his review of the transcripts, which clearly indicate that the minister is open, is interested in what we do here, and welcomes any suggestions that arise out of our deliberations. It's because of that background, as Mr. Wrzesnewskyj pointed out, that when I read the letter, I read it a little differently, obviously, from the way some of my colleagues across the way read it.
Ms. Simson suggested that she didn't see any request from the minister to do further work. In fact, I just want to point out the second paragraph of page 3 of the letter, where he says quite clearly:
Further consultation with government institutions and agencies that are responsible for the security as well as the health and welfare of Canadians would be required to ensure that the Privacy Act does not restrict the flexibility or pose additional barriers to information sharing.
Further on, in the next paragraph, he says:
It is crucial that careful consideration be given to the impact changes to the legislation may have on the operations of government institutions which are subject to the Act.
Given those statements, and against the background of the things the minister himself said in person at this committee and in the other letter regarding the Privacy Act and the Access to Information Act suggestions, he's making it very clear to me that he appreciates the work we've done thus far and has read them carefully, and that what he'd like us to do is more spadework in the areas in which he sees some concerns. He's asking us to meet with other government officials to hear some more testimony on what impact those quick fixes might have in those areas.
I think this is a very clear invitation to us to do further work. I think it would be helpful to the government, and it's what we're elected to do, so I'd be very pleased to support your suggestion, Mr. Chair, that we ask for a further response and that we decide to do some further work on this very important issue.
Thanks very much.