Madam Speaker, the member highlighted some important aspects of the bill and then used the parallel to accountability and transparency of government itself.
The Canadian Comprehensive Auditing Foundation held a round table this past Tuesday. It said that there was a clear matrix of responsibilities in the accountability relationship, first, the government reports to parliament, and second, Parliament in turn holds government accountable. It also went on to mention that one of the pivotal roles played in that accountability was the public accounts committee, which in the Westminster system is typically chaired by the opposition, and that is the case for us. Would the member to comment on that?
Also would he comment specifically on the broader question about whether the resources are available to discharge the responsibilities that are put on Parliament in terms of holding government accountable?
Members of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants have been on the Hill this week. They have been talking about governance issues and accountability and transparency issues. One of the important aspects that I talked to some of the representatives about last evening had to do with directors' liability.
The member is aware of Worldcom and the Enron situation. As a result of the severe consequences with respect to directors' liability, the corporate sector, and I can only presume the banking sector as well, is having difficulty attracting good quality people to be directors of corporations to discharge those responsibilities because of the onerous responsibilities and exposure they have under liability. This is very troubling. There are cases where marquee directors have been appointed, people who have held many directorships, and they cannot discharge all their responsibilities. They are there simply to attract other directors.
We have to keep our eye on the issue of directors' liability. I hope the member will share some comments on that as well.