Finance committee  I am not a...[Editorial Note: inaudible]

Finance committee  I do not think that the minister is going to the meeting expecting to get unanimous agreement on the final conclusions of the expert panel, especially since that panel has not finished its work. The positions of some provinces and some ministers are well-known. The debate will co

Finance committee  I cannot express an opinion on that at the moment. Choices will have to be made once negotiations begin, and once discussions are held based on a report and a specific proposal. The intent is for willing participation. What will happen if not all parties are willing to be involve

Finance committee  It is entirely federally funded.

Finance committee  Those appointed to the panel are people of skill and integrity. After all, they are the ones who are going to have to sign the report and make the recommendations. I feel that we can rely on their integrity.

Finance committee  When the minister met his counterparts in June 2007, he proposed working together to come up with the expert panel. Their response was that they did not really want to be involved. That being the case, he said that he would form the panel, but would make sure that it sent its rec

Finance committee  No.

Finance committee  Even when the federal government suggested working in cooperation with the provinces, it offered to provide all the funding. There was really never a question of shared funding.

Finance committee  Mr. Chair, I could only refer to the document that has been issued by the government. What it is talking about is a common securities regulator based on the willing participation of jurisdictions.

Finance committee  I am saying that the mandate given to the panel is quite clear. It is saying that the proposal will be respectful of the jurisdictional framework for securities regulation in Canada and will allow willing participation of provinces and territories.

Finance committee  Let me say two things. First, the provinces clearly have the constitutional power to administer the structures that they are presently administering. However, a number of previous studies have looked at the question. I also have here the report that was completed in 2003 and that

Finance committee  For a very long time, as you know.

Finance committee  In broad terms, yes.

Finance committee  I think that the government must also listen to other parties, this committee, for example, which has expressed an opinion on two occasions. If I refer to the 2007 report on pre-budget consultations and to the 2006 report, this committee recommended that the government move into

Finance committee  Perhaps not unanimously, I grant you. The Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce has made the same recommendation in the past, as well as distinguished groups from the private sector: the wise person's report of 2003, the Crawford committee in 2006, one of whos