Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to thank all of you for appearing before the Standing Committee on Public Accounts.
I have a number of questions. There appear to be different ways to improve intellectual property management. Among other things, the Auditor General said that Public Works and Government Services Canada seemed to be doing a good job when it is the contracting authority regarding the various external contracts and when it is a matter of identifying intellectual property. The report also states that the department negotiates before entering into a contract.
As for NRC, it says in the action plan that you take the time—probably with each contract—to ensure that appropriate contracting language is used. I am not sure if you do it on a case-by-case basis. But, as far as the other departments go, it says that you prefer to use a strategy rather than standardized clauses.
So, depending on where you are in the department, there seem to be different strategies for identifying intellectual property in contracts. I would like to hear Ms. Fraser's thoughts on that.