I can try to answer, but these are very complex questions.
In answer to your question about whether we have enough staff to deal with requests to get involved in elections, I can tell you that our system of regulations requires people to submit their application form 30 days in advance. When that deadline is met, we do have enough time.
Unfortunately, many people are unaware of the requirements of that system, and that's why we receive a great many requests at the last minute. We don't want to punish people, and we have tried to answer their requests. What we can say is that when everything comes in at the last minute, we clearly do not have enough staff. On the other hand, if people meet the 30-day deadline, our staff is adequate to handle these requests.
We are under a lot of pressure from people wanting to be candidates in municipal elections. I'm not talking only about Ontario; there are other provinces as well. We receive approximately 25 requests at the last minute. It's difficult. We have a process to follow. For now it is more a matter of being in transition than it is a staff issue.
As regards recruitment in the public service, under the priority system, all candidates, even if they come from a minister's office, must be qualified for the job. We have taken certain steps inside the public service to provide additional clarification with respect to job qualifications and requirements. All applications must be reviewed based on these requirements.
As regards audits relating to non-partisanship, we want to move more slowly, because this is an area where there are no clear rules. We proceed more on a case-by-case basis. We want to gain greater experience in this area. At the present time, the system is based on complaints, guidelines and general directives.