Information & Ethics committee  We didn't have a proposal in that regard. It only struck us after the single round we went through last year, where, when we charted it, I said to myself, “This is odd. We get recommendations from this body, and then where is the part that closes the loop?” It was once we started talking about this that we concluded there needs to be, obviously, more thought put to that question and some kind of proposal brought to the fore.

Information & Ethics committee  The only other shred of information I can offer on this front is that the Ethics Commissioner was invited to participate in the panel process and declined. That doesn't answer your question. It just adds a little bit of context to it. So what I would like—

Information & Ethics committee  But the commonality of all of those five, which were included, was that they watch over the manner in which government departments, agencies, and the bureaucracy conduct themselves.

Information & Ethics committee  There are a number of bodies that go to the Board of Internal Economy.

Information & Ethics committee  Yes, sir.

Information & Ethics committee  I can take another try at a somewhat unsophisticated answer for you, Mr. Chair, with your indulgence. What we were trying to do to a certain degree was group together organizations with a common set of watchdog functions—not that they are completely homogenous. Obviously there are distinctions within the group, but they have a certain kind of relationship with citizens and taxpayers, as well as with parliamentarians and the government organizations over which they watch.

Information & Ethics committee  Yes, they're all different.

Information & Ethics committee  I don't know the answer to that. My impression is no, but I would have to check on it for you.

Information & Ethics committee  Yes, I would prefer the “I'll check into it” answer.

Information & Ethics committee  It could be, conceptually, yes, sir.

Information & Ethics committee  The second thing I would note is that typically when the secretariat approaches these funding proposals, in our analysis we look across a broad cross-section of government organizations, making allowances for difference in mandate, etc., to determine what are the trends, who are the outliers, what are the emerging issues.

Information & Ethics committee  I can describe it in very general terms. Each blue ribbon panel, depending on what it's doing, functions in a different way, depending on that panel's mandate and scope, etc. For example, there's a blue ribbon panel right now looking at grants and contributions and obstacles to efficient delivery of those to recipient organizations.

Information & Ethics committee  Mr. Chair, I'm going to have to get back to you on that set of questions, because I wouldn't want to mislead you and suggest that I know the answers.

Information & Ethics committee  Yes.

Information & Ethics committee  Once the panel members are identified and the panel is struck, we anticipate that it will be at the call of the chair of the panel. There may be merit in having a few conversations or meetings that are not actual funding requests but contextual sessions during which we could perhaps go over the process, for example, from a Treasury Board Secretariat point of view.