Thank you.
Mr. Fortier, I take this opportunity to address Bill C-2, more specifically the provisions on the Procurement Auditor. Obviously no one can be opposed to virtue. However, citizens need to understand what this is about. Internal audits are conducted in the departments, and there is an Auditor General. Now we have an Office of the Comptroller General at the Treasury Board, and that's very good.
However, since this is about creating an auditor position and assigning a group to serve that person, I'd like to know whether you can assure us that that won't cause any duplication, in any form whatever. I'd also like to know whether the auditor will examine acquisition practices. 22.1(3)(a) states:(a) review the practices of departments for acquiring materiel and to assess their fairness—
I'd like to know whether the work of this procurement auditor will focus only on the departments, that is your clients, or whether it will also include auditing existing internal practices. I'd like to know how that will differ from the findings of your normal internal audit and from those of the Auditor General.
Proposed subsection 22.2(4) states:(4) the Procurement Auditor may not recommend the cancellation of the contract to which the complaint relates.
The masculine includes the feminine. I say that with a smile, but I'd like to know what the powers of this auditor will be. I'm concerned that he may be able to cancel a contract where a complaint is filed and not well documented. We're going to audit, but we won't be able to do anything on the subject.
I'll give you the example of the Public Service Commission. If a department misuses its delegated power, it may be revoked. The department would then be put under trusteeship for a period of time. An appointment can even be revoked, if ever evidence is brought that it violates the established rules. I imagine this kind of situation would be very rare. One of my colleagues is a member of the legislative committee responsible for studying Bill C-2. I wonder why this kind of power wasn't given to the auditor.
Wouldn't you have liked to give these duties more teeth?