We'd have to look at the overall procurement: how it works, what are the rules for larger contracts, and when does Treasury Board get in? We should start with that kind of an overview, because there are different levels of procurement. For major purchases, there's one way of dealing with it if there are large amounts of money over long periods of time, and then you have all the different levels. There may be some rules that can be changed or made better, but the rules are basically there.
You have to remember, some of this is extremely large. There aren't a lot of people who can bid on some of these things. So it is a difficult topic, but I think it's one that we should take on, much like we've done with other studies. Do a good study so that we can come up with some recommendations that make a difference.
Sometimes people feel that it's quite boring, but if you take some of the studies we've done, such as the accrual accounting.... Most people—you weren't here when we did it—thought that was the biggest yawn there was, but extremely important in the long term. Hopefully this won't be as bureaucratic.
At any rate, I think we should do this. We should get together and come up with an overall plan. We'll ask our researchers to sit down with me and with us, and also, please make sure you think of people you'd like to bring before the committee.
On Thursday we have a meeting, and we might, if we have time, have a short meeting to discuss this again. But maybe we're not giving our researcher enough time.