Thank you.
First of all, I'd like to thank all of the witnesses for coming today to testify, and I'd also beg your indulgence. My question is to the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario, and l'ordre des comptables agréés du Québec.
In clause 181, this bill talks about public accountants or auditors. Irrespective of whether or not paragraph 181(1)(b) is in the bill, ultimately my concern is that Bill C-4 be a good piece of legislation. There's no question that one of the two groups, either you or the Certified General Accountants' Association, is not going to be satisfied with the bill's final form.
This, of course, is a piece of legislation that deals with a matter of great importance. Forgive me thinking at one point that there may be a little bit of a turf battle going on here—at least that's my perception as a non-expert. So if you'll indulge me, I would like to quote from the other group and ask you what your opinion is of their statement. Of course, they want to remove paragraph 181(1)(b), and one of their arguments is that the provision is redundant and that:
...a professional accountant who provides public accounting services must comply with the requirements of his association or institute whether these requirements are matters of law or practice. The requisite level of oversight is appropriately captured in the first requirement.
What is your comment about that assertion?