Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Members of the committee, it is a privilege and an honour for me to be here today to discuss my nomination as Chief Electoral Officer.
Let me first briefly introduce myself. I was born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, where the Saint-Maurice River and the St. Lawrence River meet. I went to college in Montreal and subsequently studied law at the University of Ottawa where I graduated in civil law in 1976. I was admitted to the Quebec Bar in 1977.
After briefly practising law at legal aid in Saint-Henri, Montreal, I taught law for four years at the Civil Law Section of the University of Ottawa before taking part in the Canada Interchange Program with what was then known as the Department of Consumer and Corporate Affairs, to assist with pending insolvency reform. After returning to teaching, I was recruited by the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy where I have been working in various capacities for the last 25 years except for a one-year education leave I took to pursue a master's degree in law at the London School of Economics and Political Sciences.
I am happily married and the proud father of two very fine teenagers, Francis and Maxime.
As you can see from my bio, I have had a very specialized career in the little-known but yet critical field of insolvency. More specifically, over the last 10 years, I have been in the position of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, the head of the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, a special operating agency of Industry Canada.
The OSB is the regulatory agency mandated with overseeing insolvency activities in Canada. As such, the superintendent is vested with a wide range of authorities that includes the licensing of individuals and corporations handling the liquidation of assets and reorganizations of the financial affairs of individuals and businesses alike.
The superintendent is responsible for their on-going monitoring; the oversight of accounting in insolvency cases; the adjudication of matters involving the professional conduct of licensees; the keeping of public records of insolvency proceedings; the recording and handling of complaints; the investigation of offences under the Bankruptcy Act or any other act, if these offences would not be investigated otherwise.
Finally, and more generally, the superintendent has the responsibility, under the act, for the setting of standards for the conduct of parties involved in insolvency proceedings, in particular, the trusts, the creditors, and of course the debtors. But an even more general responsibility of the superintendent is to issue directives having the force of law to facilitate the carrying out of purposes and provisions of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act.
In 2006 there were over 106,000 insolvencies registered in Canada involving close to $6 billion in assets and $12.5 billion in liabilities. The insolvency system plays a significant social and economic role for debtors first, but also for creditors and for society as a whole.
The insolvency regime has become a tool of industrial adjustment, allowing businesses and individuals to adjust to various shocks that happen in the economy. It allows investors and lenders to assess their exposure and cost their capital accordingly. It provides a safety net for honest entrepreneurs and individuals, giving them a chance for a fresh start while sanctioning the behaviour of those who are less honest.
I bring these matters of my current function to your attention because I believe they are somewhat analogous to the functions and responsibilities assigned to the Chief Electoral Officer.
As a regulator, I've always thought that my first and foremost responsibility was to carry out my functions at all times with independence and objectivity, free from third-party influence, and doing so always in support of Parliament’s intention and for the greater public good. As a regulator, I have always carried out my functions guided by what I consider to be the core values of access, transparency, consistency, and fairness. As a regulator, I believe my role is to ensure that rules and standards are relevant; that they are kept modern; that they are clear; and that people are aware of those rules and understand the behaviour expected. I believe the rules should be applied consistently, and whenever they are broken, we should act fairly but decisively against violators, always having due consideration for the rigorous stewardship of resources.
While, as you can tell, I do not have specific expertise in electoral matters, I have spent most of my professional life in the administration of the law. I have managed a diverse and decentralized organization, dealing with a wide range of stakeholders, always seeking to ensure that our programs and services were responsive to an ever-changing environment and providing value to all participants.
I believe Elections Canada plays a critical role in our democracy. It must ensure that all electors can exercise their right to vote. It is important that electors have confidence that the electoral process is impartial, accessible, fair, transparent, efficient, and free from manipulations.
I can assure you that should the committee and the House express their trust in my abilities to perform the functions of Chief Electoral Officer, I will work every single day that I am in the position to earn and keep your trust, and I will do so in accordance with the values that I've just described.
Thank you, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.
