Information & Ethics committee  —I ended up ceasing that. There were charges, and he was found guilty. I'm not going to report to Parliament on such a matter.

Information & Ethics committee  That is the way the act is set up right now.

Information & Ethics committee  Then I wait for them to do something, either to send it back to me or to lay a charge. When that is done, if they send it back to me, then I could report to Parliament. If they lay a charge...for example, in the Carson file—

Information & Ethics committee  I cannot confirm anything in relation to the investigations I conduct. It's really because I need to ensure the integrity of all investigations, including those involving the RCMP. I can tell you that if I'm doing an investigation under the code, and under the act, and I have to forward all the information I've obtained under the act to the RCMP, I must also suspend the one under the code, because I can't be talking to all the same witnesses at the same time as the RCMP.

Information & Ethics committee  If I may add, I can tell you as well that just as it is frustrating for you that I am not able to confirm anything, it is also frustrating for me and the employees of my office not to be able to share the extensive work that we do. Everything is being looked at very thoroughly. I can only ask you to trust that the system is working in accordance with the act, as it should, and that when and if I have an opportunity to report to Parliament, I will.

Information & Ethics committee  I think if the act were changed so I'd be able to confirm whether or not I've started an investigation, and whether I've completed it...But I don't complete the investigations I send to the RCMP; I suspend them.

Information & Ethics committee  If the RCMP sends the file back to me, I will likely still report to Parliament on many of the files I have dealt with in the last year, even if they decide not to proceed with accusations. What I would do is simply report to Parliament what I had done and what I had found. That's what I would do, but it hasn't come back to me yet.

Information & Ethics committee  I will look into that and get back to you.

Information & Ethics committee  I would like to add something else.

Information & Ethics committee  I think having a spectrum of sanctions would help as well. Right now, everything that is an offence under the act is to be sent to the RCMP. But in fact—you're correct—not all files are created equal. There might be files where we could simply issue a public report with AMPs, a prohibition on lobbying and not necessarily an offence under the Criminal Code.

Information & Ethics committee  I don't know, since I am not part of the discussions. What I can tell you is that the registry lists topics of discussion. If it is about budget requests, it is listed. The more entries in the register, the more transparency, in my view. However, the quality of lobbying and accessibility are not within my mandate.

Information & Ethics committee  A few years ago, there was the legalization of cannabis. It was a hot issue, and, indeed, there was an increase in representations in that area. Health, the environment, industry and economic development are topics that are always in the news. We can see that there are higher rates in some areas, but the areas that seem to be of interest to people are the ones you are discussing.

Information & Ethics committee  I think that the Privy Council is the third or fourth most solicited department in terms of lobbying. The House of Commons is in first place because it is an institution. Usually, the Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development is second, and next is the Privy Council, that is, the Prime Minister's Office, which is always third or fourth.

Information & Ethics committee  Yes. The registry shows not only the topics discussed on a given day, but also the details of discussions. It doesn't describe every minute, but it is a kind of box in which they can enter certain data.

Information & Ethics committee  I will get you the statistics on how many times it is about subsidies or money.