Foreign Affairs Committee on Dec. 13th, 2006

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

The question is on amendment L-5.1.

(Amendment agreed to) [See Minutes of Proceedings]

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Amendment NDP-11 is now not put.

Next is NDP-12. Madam McDonough.

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Consistent with the consensus that has already been achieved, we remove all references to the advisory committee. That is where this is coming from.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

This is consequential from another amendment. It deletes proposed paragraph 9(1)(b), lines 17 and 18 on page 5:

(b) a summary of the annual report submitted by the Committee under section 8;

Is anyone speaking to that? I will give you time.

(Amendment agreed to)

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Next is amendment NDP-13. Madam McDonough.

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

This is again very straightforward. It is a response to wanting to make this more inclusive. It is that proposed paragraph 9(1)(d) be amended by replacing lines 24 and 25 on page 5 with the following:

priorities and policies of the Bretton Woods Institutions; and

It replaces “World Bank and the International Monetary Fund” with “Bretton Woods Institutions”.

I so move.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

All right. Is it consequential? It is not really.

Does anyone want to comment on this?

Mr. Patry.

[Bernard Patry, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

I just want to ask Madam McDonough this. Do the World Bank or IMF or all the Bretton Woods institutions not report on a yearly basis? Why should we put that here? I'm just asking. I think they report.

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Let me look back.

[Bernard Patry, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

I think it's redundant, that's all.

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

It's not redundant. We're just changing—

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

A summary of any representation made by Canadian representatives with respect to priorities and policies of the

Bretton Woods institutions—and the International Monetary Fund?

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

It just replaces the IMF with Bretton Woods institutions; it's generic.

[Bernard Patry, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

My question—

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Go ahead, Mr. Patry.

[Bernard Patry, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

Thank you.

When you talk about any representation made by a Canadian representative with respect to priorities and policies, does it mean that anytime the board of any Bretton Woods institution has a meeting, any representation or summary of these meetings should be available to the committee, even if it's an in camera meeting, including the fact that Canada is also representing some other countries, such as Ireland and some of the Caribbean countries?

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

Subject to the confidentialities that we just passed.

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

I think if I understand your question, the point of this is that whatever reporting requirements there are for the now World Bank and International Monetary Fund, we're broadening those to say the Bretton Woods institutions. Those reporting requirements don't necessarily respond to the criteria that we set out in this bill. It's a way of reinforcing that whatever their reporting requirements may be, we have some criteria that we want to be sure are taken into account. That's the point of it.

It's not some totally new set of requirements; it's just making sure that we're hearing back on the provisions of this bill that we're adopting here.

[Bernard Patry, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

Regarding my question, if there is a meeting of the IMF or the World Bank, and inside the meeting they're discussing the facts about giving grants or subventions for anything they're doing in the world in any country, you want to ask the competent minister, the Minister of Finance, and the World Bank to give us a résumé of what was discussed over there.

That's what I'm asking you. That's what we're requesting: a summary of any representation, a representation by Canadian representatives with respect to priorities and policies. Have you discussed policies? We're going to discuss policy, and at the end they are going to say we have three or four policies, and we end up with one.

Do you want to know everything that's going to be discussed in the World Bank or in all these institutions?

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

First, the operative word is summary.

Secondly, we need to come back to what this exercise is about. It's also about greater accountability and transparency, which is something we all agree is important. I think there is a concern to establish that what we're advocating on behalf of Canada is both reported back to Canada and is understood to be consistent with the priorities we have adopted here.

Summary is the word. We're not talking about verbatim reports and everything that gets discussed, but a summary of what it is we are there advocating and representing on behalf of Canada.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

All right.

Mr. Patry.

[Bernard Patry, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

Regarding Canadian representatives, does it mean just the one who is responsible, the key person, or does it mean any staff over there? They are representatives of Canada over there.

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

That's why we want to know what they're doing on our behalf, and whether it's consistent—

[Bernard Patry, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

If you have a staff of 20 people, do you want to know what the 20 people are doing for transparency? I'm reading this.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

A summary of any representation made by Canadian representatives—