Ottawa remains committed to reform of securities regulation, according to Tuesday’s federal budget.

The budget reiterated that the “Wise Men’s” committee, recommended by Harold Mackay, the Finance department’s special advisor, is still part of its plans.

However, the committee has been part of its plans since Mackay made his recommendations in November 2002. So far, nothing has been announced. And the date Mackay intended the committee to report —September 2003 — is almost certainly unattainable.

Still, a Finance official says that it expects to name the committee in the next couple of weeks. It has been in discussions with the provinces about possible candidates, although provincial response has been mixed.

The proposed Wise Men’s committee follows on an idea used in Europe in an effort to create a single financial market for the European Union. In Canada, the committee would be charged with reviewing the current situation and recommending the ideal model for Canada.

The idea for a Canadian committee came after last fall’s Throne Speech, in which the government declared its commitment to work with the provinces and market players to improve the system. Mackay was appointed Special Representative on Canadian securities regulation to recommend a process for reform. That process has yet to get out of the gate, although Finance insists that it’s coming.

The other big area of regulatory reform getting a bit of attention in the budget is corporate governance. Again, the fragmented views of the provinces have bogged down progress.

Ottawa is seeking to beef up the corporate governance requirements under its jurisdiction, namely the Canada Business Corporations Act and federal financial institution statutes. The point is reiterated in the budget.

Yet concrete action remains tied up with any reforms that take place at the provincial level, among the securities commissions and at the stock exchanges. There is little unanimity here, too, with the Ontario Securities Commission pushing for tougher, mandatory rules, and the B.C. Securities Commission and the TSX warning that standards must not be too tough and compliance should be voluntary.

Finance appears to be coming down on the side of the OSC, although it has yet to introduce any reforms of its own. A department official says Canada cannot afford to be sub-standard in its rules, suggesting that it would generally like to follow the tough U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley reforms.