You mentioned National Defence. They had their little problems over there on contracting; it was about a $150 million deal. I've always been a proponent of internal audit coming under the direction of the Treasury Board and the Comptroller General, rather than reporting to the deputy minister, because I've always maintained it's a career limiting move to criticize the boss; therefore, internal audits should be under your supervision so that you ensure that issues identified are dealt with appropriately.
This also allows for some independence of the internal auditor. By being Treasury Board employees and moving around from department to department, there's always something fresh and new for them to look at.
In the private sector, internal audit is what I call a fast track to senior management, and in the federal government internal audit is a dead-end job. What's your comment on ensuring that internal audit is alive and doing its job properly and under the control of the Comptroller General?