While they're still in office.
I have a question for our friends here. I'm looking at this notion.... You identified flaws in the bill as it stands right now. First of all, I don't know if you've read the Information Commissioner's recommendations to the committee on ways to fix it...access to the PMO.... You've got it. Do you support what she's recommended to the committee broadly?
Okay, that was a nod yes.
You mentioned that one good thing is that the mandate letters are public. I'm reading the mandate letter for Mr. Brison, who sponsored this bill, one of the few witnesses we've had who fully likes it. In the end, his mandate letter says, “...the Information Commissioner is empowered to order government information to be released and that the Act applies appropriately to the Prime Minister’s and Ministers’ Offices....”
In his mandate letter that is now going to be by default publicly disclosed, and that is good. They're not following.... There's some irony here somewhere that the one thing that's going to be made public is an example of one thing that they're just not following in the design of their own Bill C-58.
My question is the same for you. Does Bill C-58 move us forward? Does it move us backwards as it is? What would be the one or two main amendments to give it some chance of improving access to information for Canadians?