Thank you, Chair. I will.
This letter particularly pertains to SDTC. It refers to the Auditor General's report and it's from the RCMP commissioner, Mike Duheme.
I want to quote from this letter. He says, “There is significant risk that the Motion”—i.e., the Conservative motion—“could be interpreted as a circumvention of normal investigative processes and Charter protections.”
He goes on to say in the last paragraph:
I would like to emphasize as well that the RCMP is operationally independent and strictly adheres to the principle of police independence. In a free and democratic society, this ensures that the government cannot direct or influence the actions of law enforcement and that law enforcement decisions remain based on the information and evidence available to police.
I wanted to get your perspective on this, but I will also reference that the Auditor General has sent a similar letter with a similar reaction. The concern is that agents of Parliament—in this case the Conservatives, in their motion—are essentially eroding the independence of key officers of Parliament and independent institutions.
Mr. von Finckenstein, I would like to get your perspective on this.