Of subsection 85.1. It says:
For greater certainty, the special advocate is not a party to the proceeding [...]
This is a poor translation, and I hope it will be corrected.
It is stated that:
[...] the special advocate is not a party to the proceeding and the relationship between the special advocate and the permanent resident or foreign national is not that of solicitor and client.
Mr. Minister, I understand why the special advocate is not a party to the proceeding and why this relationship, that does exist, cannot be that of solicitor and client. You will therefore conclude, as I do, that the special advocate has no solicitor-client privilege obligation towards his or her client. Personally, even if I understand why there is no solicitor-client privilege, I do not understand why the special advocate is not required to keep secret confidences made by the individual involved, as would be the case for any other lawyer.
You seem to be saying, in your first response, that a lawyer with any integrity would keep this information secret. However, given the way this bill has been drafted—and you will agree—, anything the individual says to this advocate could one day be used as evidence against him or her. If you believe that a lawyer's integrity should force him or her to respect confidentiality, then I imagine that you would expect that we clarify the Bill in order to ensure that the individual who speaks to this advocate will be able to do so with the assurance that he or she is not there to trap him or her nor to draw from him or her information that the security services agents are unaware of.