Procedure and House Affairs committee  I would like to thank the Chair and the members of this committee for taking the time to hear from me. Thank you very much.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Last September I issued an annual report, which was the first report issued by the office of the commissioner. That report is out there. It describes our activities and our work. It also contains a certain number of recommendations in terms of the challenges we were facing and we are recommending to the government some of the changes that should be made to allow us to deal more effectively with those challenges.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  It certainly is my intention. In that respect, I would note that the bill, as it currently reads, provides that it is not the commissioner anymore who would be reporting on these activities; rather, it is the director of public prosecutions who would report on the activities of the commissioner, except for the specifics of investigations, as the bill says.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  The provision in the bill specifies that it is the director of public prosecutions who would report to the Attorney General about the activities of the commissioner.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I don't know, in terms of machinery of government and parliamentary procedure, whether I should be reporting to this committee or to Parliament. But certainly it seems to me that nothing would prevent this committee or Parliament from amending the bill and making it clear that the commissioner himself or herself has the ability to make a report on his activities.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  The analogy that I would make, Mr. Chair, would be that the Chief Electoral Officer reports to the two Houses of Parliament. That is my understanding. Given that there is some element of commonality between the two, an amendment could also provide that the report of the commissioner would be like the report of an agent of Parliament and could go directly to the two Houses of Parliament.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  It raises serious questions.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Even as a principle of administration, as you say, I think the Canada Elections Act can be made clear with whatever it is that would be required to state, in black and white, that the commissioner is to exercise his functions in a way that is completely independent and so on. But the other thing is also the loss of efficiency that would necessarily flow, in my view, from us being taken out of Elections Canada and moved into a department of the government.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Mr. Chair, I think I have answered this question already. I will repeat that neither I nor the people in my office were consulted by the Minister of State on the provisions in the bill.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Mr. Chair, as I mentioned in my opening presentation, according to my interpretation and that of the lawyers and legal counsel who advise me, clause 510.1 raises very serious issues about whether, when an investigation is completed, I will be able to disclose the outcome, except to state that the investigation has been concluded and that we have decided not to take any action.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Absolutely.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  That is what I saw in the bill.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Commenting on this matter is not really my role. However, I found it strange, and I have a lot of difficulty understanding why it was considered a good idea to include a provision like this in the bill. However, perhaps there are people who are better positioned and better informed than I am who could answer your question.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Generally, I think the Chief Electoral Officer told you what was included. In my opinion, some proposed amendments are positive, such as the increase of fines in certain situations and the creation of new offences. For example, if someone obstructs our investigations, that would now be an offence.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Indeed.