Thank you, Mr. Chair.
There was one point you raised a little while ago that got me thinking, and then the same point was raised in a different manner by a number of different members. That was on the requirement for witnesses to speak the truth before committees, whether those witnesses are sworn or not.
I'd like to give you a parallel between this idea of deeming the obligation to speak the truth versus being sworn under oath. That is, being called to a court, civil or criminal, by means of a subpoena, versus being called before a committee by means of invitation. In my mind, as a practitioner, both have equal value. In other words, an invitation to appear before a committee is still as inherently binding as a subpoena before a court. In that sense, every witness all the time has the obligation to speak the truth to a committee.
You can't refuse an invitation from a committee, and it is utterly unacceptable not to tell the truth when you appear before a committee.