Public Accounts committee  As I remember it, I would say that I asked for them while the investigation was under way. There was a time when I was told that the documents would eventually be available, would be released. When the investigation was over, obviously I must have thought that we needed access to

Public Accounts committee  I would have some difficulty answering that. Someone at the access to information office... Unfortunately, I'll have to get back to you on this, because I'm speaking from memory.

Public Accounts committee  The person in question indicated that it might be useful to submit a request for the work file. I had no idea what this was about, or what there could be in the work file. That wasn't indicated to me at the time. I did as the person recommended and submitted the request. It was o

Public Accounts committee  No, I haven't, from the minister's office. I had the opportunity though to meet the minister.

Public Accounts committee  Mr. Stockwell Day. I had the opportunity to meet the minister, I think, on April 18, to the best of my recollection. I had the opportunity of presenting him with the documentation hand to hand--the documentation that I supplied to the clerk of the committee.

Public Accounts committee  Yes, sir. Even though I was a divisional representative for 16 years, there is always a certain fear, if I can say so, in stepping forward to express yourself freely, even in this democracy, especially in a paramilitary organization such as the RCMP. There are repercussions, and

Public Accounts committee  That is one thing you are taught in the training--CYA. I learned in training to cover myself always. As you advance in the organization and become aware of a lot of situations going on, you can see members protecting themselves more.

Public Accounts committee  I think one member at this table knows even more than I do on this issue. That is Mr. John Spice. I know he's aware of a lot of anomalies that went on during his term. I know of cases. One of the big problems I faced as a division representative in the RCMP was institutional p

Public Accounts committee  As the representative for 1,000 civilian and regular members of the RCMP in Quebec, I thought it was important for them to know how their pension fund was being managed.

Public Accounts committee  That's what I believe, Mr. Laforest. You are absolutely right. I have always held that it is the right of the members, or in my case, the members of the Quebec and Cornwall divisions, which now make up Division C, to decide who will or will not represent them, to agree or disagre

Public Accounts committee  That's correct, yes.

Public Accounts committee  Yes, it happened afterwards, but that was not necessarily the only issue involved. What happened is that Ms. Barbara George, who appeared before the committee, established a policy, that is, she approved an RCMP policy dealing with potential conflict of interest situations involv

Public Accounts committee  I know that other people within the RCMP tried to run for the positions of either staff relations representative or assistant representative, which is more or less like being a delegate for a particular sector, and to my knowledge they were all prevented from doing so because, un

Public Accounts committee  Based on my experience of the last few years, I believe that this would lead to much more transparency. In fact, I believe it would bring about something I have been advocating forcefully for years, namely accountability at all levels: within the rank and file, within the staff r

Public Accounts committee  For many years, that was not the case, but over time, more and more were made. I realized that it was hard to obtain information from within the organization and that it took a long time. I therefore chose to file access to information requests to get information as quickly as po