Thank you, Madam Chair.
I can only agree with the wishes for a speedy recovery offered to the Clerk of the Privy Council. I won't dwell on these wishes, as my time is more limited than that of some of my colleagues.
Good morning to the witnesses.
My first question is for Mr. Wallace and Mr. Huppé and concerns the infamous Phoenix pay system.
I can only tell you about the many cases in which I've had to intervene regarding the hell that some public servants are going through. People have told me about their distress. I've heard many testimonies about bankruptcy, divorce and even suicide.
I understand that you have good words of encouragement for better pay management and technological advances, but you'll understand that it does nothing to reassure me. Until I'm told that the problem is completely resolved, I won't be reassured.
You mentioned the competency of existing managers.
Have the people who needed to improve their competencies done so? Were the people who didn't have the competencies required replaced in an effort to fix the problem immediately?
You could, indeed, say it was a monstrous Tower of Babel.