Thank you, Chair.
Thank you so much for your presentation. I as well look forward to the document file that you'll be tabling that shows these allegations that have been made are clearly unwarranted and baseless.
I do have a couple of questions. One of them is with regard to two of your recommendations.
On the one hand, you recommend that there be a clear definition of hate and haine et mépris, and that definition should follow the judgment, the use of the terms or the definition of the terms by the Supreme Court of Canada in the Taylor case. Then you as well say that if that happens, the commission should be given a power it does not currently have, which is to be able to dismiss a complaint at its reception based on lack of jurisdiction, because in fact what is being alleged does not meet the definition of hate.
I think that's very interesting. I'll go further and ask why would the commission not ask for specific power so that after it has investigated a complaint and deems that that complaint warrants a decision made by the tribunal...why would the commission not be the only party and actually prosecute, so to speak?
We see in other areas of administrative law where a body has the exclusive right to receive a complaint, to investigate a complaint, and if it deems that the complaint warrants--there is sufficient evidence for there to be a hearing on it--it goes before a separate tribunal, but it's the investigative body, the commission, that acts as the party to the case and actually prosecutes the alleged offender before the tribunal. Why would the commission not have asked for those kinds of powers?
How am I doing on time? Is my question too long?