Evidence of meeting #16 for Finance in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was genome.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Martha Hall Findlay Liberal Willowdale, ON
But they are fully occupied in the appeals process, then.
Senior Director, Strategic Policy and Legislative Reform, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
Yes, they are fully occupied in the appeals process.
Liberal
Martha Hall Findlay Liberal Willowdale, ON
Then that doesn't help answer the question of how you go from six months to 90 days. I was hoping that there might be a different answer there. In that case, if you have appeals officers who work full-time on the appeals process and they are going to move away from doing that, but they're going to be kept in the public service, they're going to keep their salaries, assuming they stay employed.... As you've said, they're going to continue to be employed. But then the process is going to hire outside appeals officers on--I think you were saying--an as-needed basis. I really don't understand how that's going to save the government money.
Senior Director, Strategic Policy and Legislative Reform, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
When I said that they would be kept within the public service, I mean that they would fill positions that are vacant or positions from which people retire. They wouldn't be leaving the public service. It would be by attrition. We would be filling other positions that become vacant in the area. We aren't keeping double positions with someone in the public service and an appeals officer doing the same job.
Liberal
Martha Hall Findlay Liberal Willowdale, ON
Okay. I asked that question and I will just add a little bit of the concern that my colleague expressed. We'll kind of believe it when we see it, partly because we're in the process of hearing at other committees how the government is going to establish freezes on all the departments and where they're going to cut costs.
From a people-management perspective, it just isn't that easy to shunt people over into jobs that apparently happen to be there waiting for them and then bring in people from the outside. But you've answered the question, so thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
Thank you, Ms. Hall Findlay.
If we can get that information as soon as possible, we are continuing with this bill tomorrow and next week, so we would appreciate that. Thank you very much for being with us here this afternoon.
Colleagues, we will go on now to part 22, “Payments to Certain Entities”: Canadian Youth Business Foundation, Genome Canada, Pathways to Education Canada, and the Rick Hansen Foundation. I'll ask our guests to come forward.
Are there any questions, colleagues?
Monsieur Paillé.
Bloc
Daniel Paillé Bloc Hochelaga, QC
I have a number of questions.
Let's talk about the $10 million that is being granted to the Canadian Youth Business Foundation. Could you tell us about the mode of operation and say how it is that this money will be offered to people 18 to 35 years of age? Are these grants or guaranteed loans?
It says here that mentoring, financing and resources will be provided. How will we ensure that this new financing will in fact help young entrepreneurs? You'll understand that this interests me, historically. I want to know because $10 million can be very effective, just as it can be completely wasted. I'd like to know whether this $10 million to the Canadian Youth Business Foundation will be managed a little more efficiently.
Jonathan DeWolfe Chief, Industry and Knowledge Economy, Economic Development and Corporate Finance, Department of Finance
Sometimes people between 18 and 34 don't have the collateral or business experience to secure a loan through conventional channels. The Canadian Youth Business Foundation does not require an entrepreneur to have either the requisite collateral or business experience. What they do require is a business plan and a commitment to take on entrepreneurship as a full-time job, not as a part-time business or a summer job, per se. They require the entrepreneur to enter into a two-year mentorship agreement at minimum to ensure that they have proper supervision in order to give them the best chance and the best opportunity for their business to succeed.
Bloc
Daniel Paillé Bloc Hochelaga, QC
Yes, I understand what a mentoring service is, and it's a very good idea. We're talking about a minimum of two years. The first 24 months are always the toughest, even if the subsequent months are not necessarily easier.
Will this $10 million be used to pay for the mentoring services? Will it be capital for the businesses that the young entrepreneurs create, in the form of loans or loan guarantees? That's what I want to know.
Chief, Industry and Knowledge Economy, Economic Development and Corporate Finance, Department of Finance
Sorry, I should have been more clear. It is for $15,000 loans, up to $15,000 per entrepreneur. The Business Development Bank of Canada is available to provide an additional $15,000 per entrepreneur. Those loans are on commercial terms and they are expected to be repaid. In other words, they're not grants and they're not forgivable loans per se.
Bloc
Daniel Paillé Bloc Hochelaga, QC
So these are loans that are not guaranteed. If I correctly understood, you're saying that this will be at commercial rates, but that you're not expecting a lot of repayments.
Chief, Industry and Knowledge Economy, Economic Development and Corporate Finance, Department of Finance
No. Repayment is expected, and they do have a strong repayment rate to date. This program's been around for a number of years. In other words, there's not a large loan loss to date under this program.
Bloc
Daniel Paillé Bloc Hochelaga, QC
Consequently, this $10 million, to all intents and purposes, could have been in a special fund to ensure... This $10 million will come back, but where will it come back? Will it come back to the Canadian Foundation? Who is being repaid?
If I'm a young entrepreneur and I repay the foundation, does that $10 million constitute subscribed capital for the foundation?
Chief, Industry and Knowledge Economy, Economic Development and Corporate Finance, Department of Finance
I believe that's correct, yes. It's back to the foundation, which they then re-lend.
Bloc
Daniel Paillé Bloc Hochelaga, QC
Moving on to other fields of jurisdiction, I would like to talk about the Pathways to Education Program, which is receiving $20 million, and the Rick Hansen Foundation, which receives $13.5 million. The first program clearly concerns education, whereas the second concerns health.
Was that coordinated with the constitutional jurisdictions of the provinces? It seems to me that education and health are exclusive fields of jurisdiction for Quebec and other provinces. We now have $33.5 million that is toying with the maple leaf.
Mark Hodgson Senior Policy Analyst, Labour Markets, Employment and Learning, Social Policy, Federal-Provincial Relations and Social Policy Branch, Department of Finance
Mr. Chair, with respect to Pathways to Education, it's a charitable organization that's been operating since 2001. The funding will be provided to it to provide mentorship, tutoring, and support to under-represented and at-risk youth to encourage them to complete high school and go on to post-secondary education. It's not directly related to the education system.
Chief, Industry and Knowledge Economy, Economic Development and Corporate Finance, Department of Finance
The Rick Hansen Foundation's funding is in support of research, the foundation's operations, and the 25th anniversary campaign of that foundation. Again, it is not for education, per se.
Conservative
NDP
Thomas Mulcair NDP Outremont, QC
I knew the subjects, but can someone give us an indication of the percentage? In the case of the Rick Hansen Foundation, what percentage of that very large amount is allocated to people 25 years of age?
Chief, Industry and Knowledge Economy, Economic Development and Corporate Finance, Department of Finance
The funding agreement for the Rick Hansen Foundation funding has not been completed, so I can't speak to the allocation within that $13.5 million at this time.
NDP
Thomas Mulcair NDP Outremont, QC
Historically, what amounts have been granted to that foundation?
You cited the example of the Canadian Youth Business Foundation, which has been around for a long time. For how many years have we been giving to the Rick Hansen Foundation? Is it in the same order of magnitude as what we've given in the past?
Chief, Industry and Knowledge Economy, Economic Development and Corporate Finance, Department of Finance
The amounts are consistent, yes, with amounts given in the past. Budget 2001 allocated $7.5 million, for instance, over three years. Budget 2005 allocated $10 million, and budget 2009 $10 million again. There's an expectation of matching from other partners of $7.5 million in each of those instances.