Information & Ethics Committee on April 29th, 2013

[Karen Shepherd]

With the consultation that I launched in the fall, what I'm expecting is that I will be able to make an informed view of what people's opinions are. Does it need to change? Are there amendments that I need to make? Then I would go back, and it would say in the second year that these are the results of the consultation, and also any possible amendments, if that comes out from the review.

[Scott Andrews, Liberal, Avalon, NL]

Okay.

On the investigation side, how many investigations do you have ongoing right now?

[Karen Shepherd]

I believe there are five investigations ongoing.

[Scott Andrews, Liberal, Avalon, NL]

What's the average timeframe on an investigation from start to finish?

[Karen Shepherd]

That's difficult to answer. As I've explained in the past, I have a stage from the administrative review to when I decide whether an investigation is necessary to ensure compliance with the act or the code. The complexity of the files, the availability of witnesses...but also, if I have reasonable grounds to believe that the act has been breached, then I'm required to send it to the RCMP. Once it's there, the file is in a state of suspension. The average for being over there has been about seven to eight months, so it's very hard, then, to predict.

If I'm tabling a report on the Lobbyists' Code of Conduct to Parliament, there's also the opportunity for the review stage, which can take time as well, at the end.

[Scott Andrews, Liberal, Avalon, NL]

How many have you referred to the RCMP?

[Karen Shepherd]

Since I became commissioner? Ten.

[Scott Andrews, Liberal, Avalon, NL]

Okay. When you refer them to the RCMP, do you make a public statement that you've gotten to this stage in this investigation?

[Karen Shepherd]

I do not. As I've said in the past, the act requires that I conduct my looking into a file in private. I think it's important for a couple of reasons. One, it protects the integrity of my investigation. It also protects the integrity of a future police investigation. Saying where I am in the process and that I've maybe transferred it over perhaps could jeopardize the investigation being done by the police.

[Scott Andrews, Liberal, Avalon, NL]

So to anyone who comes back from the police where they don't act on it, you will report that you did send it to the RCMP?

[Karen Shepherd]

Well, if I decide, when I'm looking at it, that I have sufficient grounds to continue with a lobbyists' code of conduct investigation, then I will mention it in my report. For example, in the Rahim Jaffer case, I said, you know, that file had been transferred to the RCMP. When it came back...and so on.

So those reports would actually contain that information. If I do not proceed, I usually have a mark in my annual report that refers to the fact that I had sent something over. That's how I would report.

[Scott Andrews, Liberal, Avalon, NL]

Thank you.

[The Chair, NDP, Pierre-Luc Dusseault]

Thank you Mr. Andrews.

I will now give the floor to Mrs. Davidson.

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Thanks very much, Mr. Chair.

Commissioner, welcome back to you and your colleagues. It's always a pleasure to have you here.

I want to spend most of my time asking you some questions on your opening remarks, to get some clarification on those.

In the first part, you spoke about how you told us the last time you were here, in 2012, you were going to be rearranging your department with a couple of different staff. First, you were deferring the development of the registration system, and secondly, you were hiring a system specialist.

Can you tell us a little bit about how this happened? I know you feel it's working well. Perhaps you can tell us why you feel it's working well, and also if there has been any downside to this.

[Karen Shepherd]

When I was here before the committee last year, I talked about the two positions, which I cut in order to increase my capacity in financial management and in performance measurement and program evaluation. What I can say about the two posts I cut is that there were two individuals sitting in those positions. One took the opportunity to retire. The other individual has found employment elsewhere.

In terms of hiring the system specialist, that was the result of reducing dependency on consultants. That individual started with us on April 1. They fit in very well with the organization. I'm quite confident that we'll be able to do what we need to do with the registry this year in terms of the integrity of the documentation and so on.

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

So it was April 1 of this year that the person started?

[Karen Shepherd]

It was April 1, 2013, because that's when my budget was actually cut.... The process last year was very much in writing the job description and staffing the position by April 1. That was all done. As I said, the other two positions have been filled and the individuals are fitting in very well with the organization.

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Next year we will hear more about how that has worked out, I expect.

[Karen Shepherd]

Yes.

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

You talked about the internal audit. Who did that? Was it consultants, or...?

[Karen Shepherd]

A consulting firm came in and did it.

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

And you were satisfied with the conclusions of it? You felt it was justifiable, what was happening within the department?

[Karen Shepherd]

I was satisfied, because it showed, in terms of the things we had put in place, that we very much have a robust system. The system is accurately capturing the data, and we have processes in place that are being followed in terms of being able to retrieve the data and report on it.

As any audit does, there are always suggestions as to what you can do to improve things. On the training side, it recognized that we had a lot of things in place, but suggested that we formalize things a little better. We had been without a CIO—I think that's the name—in charge of the computer system for a period of time, so there were some things that it felt could have been better. You “speak the speak” when you're dealing with the service provider, if I can put it that way, so we now have a full-time service CIO. That's been taken care of.

It suggested some improvements in IT. When you're looking at the fact that technology keeps advancing, you want to ensure that the system is well protected.

Those are things we will be looking at this year and following up on.

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

When you talked about education and research, you talked about the amount of money you allocate to public education activities. I'm wondering what those activities are and how you do public education.

[Karen Shepherd]

Part of that is the actual salaries of the individuals who are involved. It's the cost of maintaining the website, of any of the documents that are done, and any travel and so on that's allocated towards that activity.