Full investigation required

Re: Panel chair won’t push for Gerstein, Runia testimony, Dec. 3. A thorough investigation of the conduct of the Deloitte partner and the expense audit team is required in order to determine if professional codes of conduct and ethics were breached.

The partner who took the call from Senator Irving Gerstein should have ended the issue then, and not contacted the audit team. The partner should then have reported this to all stakeholders. Firms such as Deloitte operate under a strict code of conduct and ethics and the public needs to know if this code was breached.

The audit team then decided not to advise their client about the phone call. In my view, this was not an audit team decision to make. By not undertaking full disclosure to the client, the public needs to know if the audit team may also have breached codes of conduct and ethics. At a minimum, it did not appear to serve its client appropriately.

By the rules of their own governing bodies, the audit and accounting professions hold themselves to a high standard of conduct and ethics. This situation, in its current state, hurts these professions. Only a full investigation, with appropriate disciplinary actions as required, will restore public confidence.

BILL REID, Ottawa