Thank you, Chair.
I want to reiterate the position that I put forward with respect to the minister's response on access to information--the original letter, and then this further response. I really am perplexed. I must confess that I share my colleague Mr. Siksay's sentiments that there doesn't appear to be any will or leadership in this area at all. I'm really curious as to why, in two separate letters, the minister is directing us to study a discussion paper that clearly, if enacted and accepted, would reduce the amount of information available to the public, weaken his oversight, and would increase a government's ability to cover up wrongdoing, shield itself from embarrassment, and control the flow of information to Canadians.
We did consult with stakeholders. Not all of them agreed with Mr. Marleau's recommendations. We had a tremendous opportunity to get both sides of the issue, and I think this committee did an outstanding job. This letter gives me the feeling that he's not going to be happy until we spend a lot of time on something that, quite frankly, is a waste of time, and has been declared so by an Information Commissioner who is looking out for Canadians' best interests.
I simply wanted to comment that we're getting pushed in a direction. We're not being asked to do anything but the minister's bidding and go through this discussion paper, which, by the way, I think would be a total waste of this committee's time. That's just my opinion.
Thank you, Chair.