Evidence of meeting #59 for Public Accounts in the 39th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was dna.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Director, Biology Services, Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The capacity and the analysis has increased, yes. In fact, the bottleneck is pretty much defeated.
Conservative
The Vice-Chair Conservative Brian Fitzpatrick
Thank you, Mr. Rota.
We have some time left here. I have Mr. Wrzesnewskyj, who would like another go at things. I'll give you five minutes, Mr. Wrzesnewskyj.
Liberal
Borys Wrzesnewskyj Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
Thank you, Chair. It's very generous of you.
Madam Busson, you were quite forthcoming in your opening statement, and in it you said that the results--and I wrote down the quote--“are clearly not satisfactory”.
Deputy Commissioner Martin, do you agree with that assessment, yes or no?
Liberal
Borys Wrzesnewskyj Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
Thank you.
I'm looking at the transcripts from November 24, 2004, when Mr. Zaccardelli was testifying before a parliamentary committee. In it he stated, “The Canadian DNA data bank is a world-class operation that's being modeled and examined by many countries around the world.”
Madam Busson, are you familiar with any countries that have used the Canadian DNA bank as a model?
Commr Beverley A. Busson
I'm getting an answer from someone. I'd suggest that maybe they might want to answer the question.
Thank you.
A/Commr Joe Buckle
Yes, other countries have come and had a look at it. In particular, Singapore has modeled their data bank...and other jurisdictions within North America have used the technology, our STaCS--a way of processing samples.
Liberal
Borys Wrzesnewskyj Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
This is just a suggestion, but if other jurisdictions have used ours as a model, perhaps we should send copies of the Auditor General's report to them. If you in fact have modeled something based on what appears not to be an adequate system that we have here--
Commr Beverley A. Busson
The data bank is different from the DNA analysis capacity. They are two different programs, and it causes a lot of confusion for people. The DNA data bank refers to a whole different process and program from the DNA processing issue.
Liberal
Borys Wrzesnewskyj Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
Okay, thank you for that clarification.
I'll go back to other testimony before parliamentary committees in that timeframe. It was stated--and once again it's a quote--that the forensic services are as good as if not better than those anywhere else in the world.
Deputy Commissioner Martin, do you agree with that particular statement--once again, a yes or no.
D/Commr Peter Martin
We compare favourably with some and not favourably with others. That's a yes or no answer.
Liberal
Borys Wrzesnewskyj Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
So as good as if not better than anywhere else in the world.
Liberal
Liberal
Borys Wrzesnewskyj Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
Okay, but in other words, you do not agree with this statement.
Liberal
Borys Wrzesnewskyj Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
Thank you.
So you're telling me now that you do not agree with a statement that was made before a parliamentary committee, that you would have used different wording. Why would you not have stepped forward at that time if you had reservations about unequivocal statements of this sort, especially dealing with a matter of this seriousness?
D/Commr Peter Martin
Okay, what committee meeting was that made at? Was that the November meeting?
Liberal
Borys Wrzesnewskyj Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
It's noted in paragraph 7.31.
Auditor, you pulled that quote out of which committee meeting?
Auditor General of Canada, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
It would have been the Standing Committee on Justice, but it would have been....
D/Commr Peter Martin
Was that the November committee meeting? I wasn't at the November meeting. I wasn't in this program in November.
Auditor General of Canada, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
It was in March 2005.
