Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I think the question is becoming a little clearer and it is simply this: can this committee that is trying to swim in uncharted territories, assure this Legislature, assure the public, assure the Conflict of Interest Commissioner, the Minister who made the original allegation and the staff who may or may not be implicated, and everyone else that may be implicated with all the goings on that have happened to date, can this committee assure everyone involved that it can decisively and clearly conclude its work within a certain time frame and conduct itself decisively with authority and certainty?

I know the response coming through the letter from the Conflict of Interest Commissioner, which some seem to have attached some great importance to try and protect the integrity of, that she wishes it would all go away. She does not want to be party to this special committee. She says right in her letter she does not want to be party to it. Let her do her work. That is what it says. You know if you can say with certainty and you are going to contain the costs, which I do not think that you can.

We have already seen some of the costs that have been demonstrated to date. They are starting to become staggering. You think that you are going to extend the mandate well into October? You cannot say with certainty that you are going to be able to conclude your work. You cannot say with certainty that it is going to be under $1 million. I would suggest that it is probably $2 or $3 million.

You have no process. You are in uncharted territory. My sense is the Assembly itself is split here. There is not going to be a strong mandate for this committee. It is not going to be a warm reception for this committee when it comes back with, again, no recommendations. So is there any confidence that we are going to protect ourselves, protect the integrity of this Assembly, protect those that work for us, the Conflict of Interest Commissioner, the staff that have been assigned to work for this committee? What can you say you are going to do that is going to save and protect the integrity of anybody?

I believe that it is very difficult to assume that you are going to go into uncharted territory and come back with any confidence and say you are going to get a job done. It is not even clear under the motion what job it is you are asking to do. It is full of implications.

In my view, there is no way you can comfortably suggest that you know what your job is and you can do it, that there is a process, that there are rules of engagement, that there are defined costs. There is absolutely nothing.

I cannot support the committee continuing. I appreciate it wants to do a job and the things that it can do. I am just saying that I think that it has gone as far as it can. We have already called this special session of the Legislature specifically to consider the concluding report from this committee. It has been unable to conclude its report. It is unable to meet its original mandate, so you want to get a fresh new revised mandate, extended time, more resources, plus a mandate to save a lot of people's integrity. You have not saved anybody's yet.

So I would say that we should conclude it. We have some conclusions that we have reached. That is that the committee has gone as far as it can. The Conflict of Interest Commissioner has said from the first instance, let me table my report. It is now free for the Speaker to accept and report that. I think tomorrow, all of us will enjoy to see that report and to see what it has.

Any other issues that are outstanding can be raised in this Legislature and other processes are available. Our survival and integrity is certainly not contingent on the continuation of this committee. Thank you.