Bill C-2 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) committee  This individual would not be an agent of Parliament, he would be an officer of an institution of Parliament. So although there would be nothing to prevent an appointment for longer than three years, to do it on the basis that it's consistent with the other agents of Parliament is flawed, if you like, because he or she would not be an agent of Parliament.

Bill C-2 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) committee  I need to point out with respect to the attestation provision that you would also lose the other subsections that are covered by the amendment.

Public Accounts committee  My recollection of the meeting that took place was that Mr. Wiersema did not raise his concerns at the meeting, and certainly from my point of view, I didn't believe we were doing anything wrong in taking the action we took, which was based on a legal opinion in terms of how to treat the appropriation under the Financial Administration Act.

Bill C-2 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) committee  I'd be happy to answer your question.

Bill C-2 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) committee  The provisions in Bill C-2 will remove the priority list that currently exists, which permits exempt staff to move into the public service, as you describe.

Bill C-2 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) committee  It will eliminate the list, and it will replace that with an opportunity for exempt staff who have met a period-of-service requirement, a three-year period that currently exists for the priority list access. It will enable those individuals to compete in internal competitions within the public service for a period of 12 months.

Bill C-2 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) committee  I think the important thing in considering an answer to your question is that the government was very conscious of the need not to create additional bureaucracy, which is why they chose to strengthen an existing entity of Parliament--the Library of Parliament--and use the existing resources and capacity and expertise there and simply augment that to provide a new service for members of Parliament.

Bill C-2 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) committee  My answer to the first question was that rather than create an entirely new structure, the government sought an institution of Parliament that had a similar and complementary mandate, which was the Library of Parliament. I was answering the question with respect to not having located the function within the Office of the Auditor General.

Bill C-2 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) committee  My understanding is that the expertise required for those individuals who will support the parliamentary budget officer...that the hiring process would reflect input from those who were able to bring their own expertise to the hiring process.

Bill C-2 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) committee  The only thing I would like to add to that is that I think the government has been clear in putting together the Accountability Act as it is presented to you, and in the various elements in it that touch on a number of parts of the government—the legislature, the executive—it has identified areas in which change is, in its view, required in order to restore the confidence of Canadians in their public institutions.

Bill C-2 (39th Parliament, 1st Session) committee  We have no introductory remarks to make, but we would be happy to take questions.