Evidence of meeting #20 for Industry, Science and Technology in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was measurement.
A recording is available from Parliament.
10:45 a.m.
Bloc
Serge Cardin Bloc Sherbrooke, QC
Earlier, you mentioned that inspection fees could vary between $50 and $200. In the case of gas pumps, how do you explain such a large spread?
10:50 a.m.
Vice-President, Program Development Directorate, Measurement Canada, Department of Industry
Several factors explain the $50 to $200 spread. There are gas pumps, but there are also other devices. The complexity of the devices can also be a factor impacting upon the inspection fees.
One must realize that at present, there are in the system a lot of authorized service providers, but there is not much work. It is important. It is just the initial inspection. There are a lot of authorized service providers, but very little work.
But with Bill C-14 we will see an eight-fold increase in the number of inspections required under the law. Given that the workload will increase, there will be more competition. We are expecting that these companies will hire people to do... The number of inspections per year will go from 47,000 to 300,000.
10:50 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Michael Chong
Thank you, Mr. Vinet.
I now give the floor to the last member who will be asking questions, Mr. Masse.
10:50 a.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I just want to give the department an opportunity to explain the redistribution of resources here. It's going to reallocate $1.7 million internally. What is going to change in terms of the department's functioning? Are you able to shift the funds and not compromise other work? What is behind that?
10:50 a.m.
President, Measurement Canada, Department of Industry
We think it will be complementary. We are going to shift resources, because we're going to have these recognized technicians, these authorized service providers, doing the majority of the inspections. We will be targeting our random inspections. We'll be doing fewer inspections. We will be targeting inspections in areas where we think there may be problems or issues. We'll have more technicians to train and oversee, so we see that shift of resources as complementary to the additional....
We're going to get a lot of bang for our buck by reallocating that $1.7 million internally. Hopefully, we'll get the additional $2 million, and that will complement us in our ability to really zero in and monitor what's going on in the marketplace.
10:50 a.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
What's going to be lost in the department, though, from the $1.7 million that's reallocated?
10:50 a.m.
President, Measurement Canada, Department of Industry
We will probably be doing fewer inspections.
10:50 a.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
You will be doing fewer inspections. If you are doing fewer inspections, that is a little bit of a concern. You're seeking $2 million, though. Right now, this government's actually cutting and requesting that departments cut. What makes you believe that you'll get the additional $2 million? Right now, the minister has even been requested to cut.
10:50 a.m.
President, Measurement Canada, Department of Industry
We've made our case. We are going through the process of trying to obtain these funds. We're under a strategic review. We've had no results yet, and we have no indication that the government is going to turn this down. I can't answer that, because it hasn't happened yet.
I should also point out, though, that if this is fully implemented, we see going from approximately 42,000 inspections a year to maybe up to 300,000. When we say that we're going to be doing fewer inspections, somebody is going to be doing more inspections. Measurement Canada will take its resources and use them to target problem areas, rather than to just go out and do inspections because we do inspections. This is the important thing for us. We'll have blanket marketplace coverage that we cannot achieve now.
10:50 a.m.
NDP
Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON
This is why I asked, though, Mr. Chair.... Obviously, a $3.7 million shift is required to make this happen, and this is why I'm asking. I'd like an estimate, from 1999, of how much potential phantom gas, and the tax the government collected from that phantom tax, there was over that time period. There is going to be a need for the department to make a case. The government had been benefiting from revenue from a product not actually sold, not because there was a government conspiracy about it but because of the situation that has evolved. There is probably an argument to be made that if the department is going to implement this and consumers are going to be protected, it is going to need resources.
10:50 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Michael Chong
Okay. Thank you, Mr. Masse.
On that note, any spending, whether it's through the main estimates or the supplementaries, must come through this committee.
In that light, as a final note, we have, actually, the supplementary estimates (A) for approximately $200 million that the committee can review. Mr. Wallace has indicated to me that he wishes to set aside at least one hour--one half of one meeting--in the next four meetings to review these estimates. I will endeavour to do that. Unless there are strenuous objections from members, I'll try to set aside one hour of one of the next three or four meetings to review the supplementary estimates (A) so that the committee can vote on them and determine whether we want to adopt them and report them to the House.
Thank you, Mr. Johnston, Madame Roussy, Mr. Vinet, and Mr. Cotton for your testimony today, and I thank all members of the committee for their questions and commentary.
This meeting is adjourned.