Procedure and House Affairs committee  I think the answer is again very simple. Perhaps it is indeed simply a lack of an adequate procedure in the department; nevertheless, a document was submitted to the committee that purported that three people agreed with that document, whereas two people had signed it not agreein

Procedure and House Affairs committee  On the part of Parliament, I think that it is an even more serious matter, but that is the question of Parliament itself being entitled to get the truth and accuracy from its witnesses, including ministers.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Yes. All I will add is that if every time a senior public servant's advice is misrepresented they have to resign, I'd think we'd soon run out of competent senior public servants courageous enough to give their advice even when it disagrees with their minister's.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  There's an expression in the law, “pith and substance”--I'm not lisping--and the issue here is does Parliament ever stop playing games between the parties? Or when does it stop? That's the other one. Any motion that is acceptable under the orders of the House of Commons, and th

Procedure and House Affairs committee  It's a good question. I tried to make a distinction there between the Munir Sheikh one and the CIDA one because the compulsory survey is the heart and core of the work of Statistics Canada. Statistics Canada has had an internationally high recognition because of the work it does

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I do, sir.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  And I can't take any of his time.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Her time, sorry.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I shall.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I began my remarks by trying to identify the steps in the process. I'll just go through what has happened and then I'll raise the question. As I understand what transpired, the basic facts are not seriously in dispute. Events proceeded more or less as follows. One, a letter wa

Procedure and House Affairs committee  A pig in a poke, indeed.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  There is a saying--

Procedure and House Affairs committee  --in English that was Samuel Johnson's. He said about somebody being hung in England, a criminal, that the prospect of hanging in a fortnight concentrates the mind wonderfully. And it also produces documents for Parliament.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you, sir.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  What I said in my remarks is that I believe the government should submit a cost estimate with every bill before it gets to second reading and that the Parliamentary Budget Officer should have as one of his functions an evaluation of those cost estimates. That would, I believe, ov