Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I want to thank our witnesses.
I'd like to continue more or less along the same lines. Investigations did, in fact, reveal evidence of fraud. In 2011, for instance, fraudulent calls were made.
The Chief Electoral Officer, the Commissioner of Canada Elections and many other elections experts have said they need some very specific tools in order to properly examine this type of fraud. Among other things, they need the authority to compel witnesses to testify and to request receipts from political parties when they file claims and receive public money. Those are just some of the things they are asking for.
The commissioner and Elections Canada need many more powers than they currently have. And no such measures are in the bill. What is in the bill is the transfer of the commissioner to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, and the reason is rather arcane. It appears to be more of a smoke and mirrors exercise than anything else.
Could you please comment on that and on the fraud cases before us? They did actually happen, although the Conservatives prefer to think of them as imaginary.
In your view, should the bill include measures like the ones I just mentioned?