Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to thank Mr. Perkins for requesting this meeting. In the interest of transparency, I should add that I would have been happy to add my name to the request had the French version been made available to me earlier. That would have made three parties and six members requesting this meeting to address a worrisome situation involving the use of public funds.
I support what my colleague said about protecting whistle-blowers. That is a crucial aspect of our democracy.
I'd like to propose an amendment to the motion. First, I'd like to suggest that we have two meetings, not six. If they are short, one-hour meetings, we can compromise. However, in the interest of saving time given our very full agenda with our study of Bill C‑27, I suggest changing the wording.
Instead of directing the committee to invite specific witnesses, we could propose that all information obtained in Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics meetings on this matter be shared with the Standing Committee on Industry and Technology, including past and future testimony and, in particular, that of Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, Mr. François‑Philippe Champagne. I would leave the other four points unchanged.
We can give ourselves the option of inviting witnesses back as needed and inviting any other relevant witness so we don't have to invite them all. The meeting could take place after the whistle-blowers testify at INDU so we can get the supplementary and complementary information that will make our study even more comprehensive because I think our committee is in the best position to study this kind of motion.