Mr. Chairman, there were quite a few people who did, as far as the witnesses go, represent different organizations which made presentations. Some people such as the Baffin regional health board made a presentation, the Baffin regional council, the women's resource centre, the media, the chamber of commerce, the Kitikmeot Regional Council, the Status of Women Council, Dene Nation and the Tree of Peace supported this legislation. So, we have a whole slough of people who made presentations that represent certain organizations.
The other thing I wanted to touch on is with regard to Mr. Patterson's concern about an ombudsman, that the ombudsman should be a lawyer, accountant or a professor, for that matter. What is wrong with elders in the communities who understand the principle of natural justice? There is nothing wrong with those kinds of people addressing the same kind of issue.
Mr. Chairman, supporting these motions does not necessarily mean we should create those positions. It only means we should be looking at it.
What are we talking about when we are talking about an ombudsman? Can that be an elder in the communities? Those are all open to discussion, but we should not restrict ourselves to lawyers and accountants. I think we should be open-minded about this whole issue and request the government to first of all draft legislation regarding access to information. That was a commitment made during the leadership debate and I think the government should move in that direction if that was a promise that was made.