Government Operations committee  There are many components in the current act that were very forward thinking and have been reflected in other pieces of legislation that have been enacted in other countries since the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act , but after 11 years in this very fast developing world of whistle-blowing, the time to do it as quickly as possible, in terms of the law, social awareness and social expectation.

Government Operations committee  When I speak about the specific mental health action plan, that is from my own small organization. I'm happy to say that we have a mental health champion. We have a committee set up and a mental health action plan. I believe there's an obligation on all departments and agencies to take similar action.

Government Operations committee  Yes, we're in our second year of having an online secure form to either blow the whistle or make a complaint of reprisal. I think that certainly has been a part of the reason why we have an increase in the number of cases. That took us a while to do, to be able to do it securely, but it's up and it's running in our second year.

Government Operations committee  I currently have sufficient funds to carry out our duties under the act, and I'm not looking for more money, but this will be the first year in the history of our organization that we're actually spending our entire budget, so if I could have a holding spot to come back and ask for more money, if I need it, I promise to give you appropriate advance notice.

Government Operations committee  I believe the statement refers to the fact that proposals were made for legislative change, but no change was actually made. There have been no changes to the act.

Government Operations committee  It's up to the government to change the legislation. I wish I had the power to do so, but—

Government Operations committee  I leave that in your very capable hands.

Government Operations committee  Very interestingly, in 2017 and again last year, we noticed a significant increase. We were averaging about 85 to 100 disclosures of wrongdoing, and that went up last year to 147, I believe. This year so far—and the fiscal year is not over—we're up to approximately 130. I do think that demonstrates something very important—a measure of success, in my view—which is that people feel comfortable coming forward.

Government Operations committee  I'm happy to say I have tallied up some statistics in regard to the 16 case reports that we tabled to date. In two cases, the wrongdoer was fired. In six cases, the alleged wrongdoer—who turned out to be a wrongdoer, as we made founded cases—resigned during the course of the investigation.

Government Operations committee  Now I turn to my CFO, the man with the calculator.

Government Operations committee  I would say that I am seeing—and this is reflected in some focus group testing that we did in 2014 and I believe 2016—I think a general increase in acknowledgement of the importance of whistle-blowing. I think that's a societal change. Social forces such as the #MeToo movement, for example, are bringing a lot of attention to bear on the importance of this and the ability to speak up and to speak out.

Government Operations committee  I think that—

Government Operations committee  —the traction we're seeing socially could be really taken advantage of with legislative change. As I say, I remain very hopeful that those changes will occur.

Government Operations committee  I think it ultimately comes to a question of leadership in organizations. I know it sounds like a cliché, but the tone truly is set from the top. I think it is incumbent upon every chief executive in the system to demonstrate that they take whistle-blowing seriously and that when something is brought forward and a finding occurs, something is actually done.

Government Operations committee  I don't know if it could be set as a specific numerical target, but I do think there are ways through the departmental planning and results process to support increased awareness and clear reporting on the activities under the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act within individual departments.