Evidence of meeting #21 for Finance in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was budget.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
To the Liberals: that's a good idea.
So that's my first question: where would a guy like me find out how much of the gas tax, for example, is transferred to the provinces annually?
4:20 p.m.
General Director, Federal-Provincial Relations and Social Policy Branch, Department of Finance
There are other transfers—non-major transfers—that different departments give, and you'd have to go to the estimates for individual departments. For example, Human Resources and Skills Development transfers money to the provinces under labour market agreements. Those will show up. They're not considered major, based on their size, but they involve about $500 million per year. They'll show up in numerous places.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
So anything under $1 billion isn't showing up here. Is that what you're telling me?
4:20 p.m.
General Director, Federal-Provincial Relations and Social Policy Branch, Department of Finance
Some of them might be bigger than $1 billion. I'm just saying there's a range. The large ones we put in there, and I'd have to go back to that table.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
Well, there are some here that are $0.2 billion or $0.3 billion.
4:20 p.m.
Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Economic and Fiscal Policy Branch, Department of Finance
The gas tax is the one main transfer that in the budget we consider transferred to other levels of government, but that in the main estimates you'll find in the departmental tables.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
I have one last question, since I'm running out of time. The benefits we pay to the elderly out of government are very large, and are more than the transfer for health tax. Do we have a projection of where that's going over the next number of years?
4:20 p.m.
Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Economic and Fiscal Policy Branch, Department of Finance
Yes, we do. There are projections in the budget through 2014-15. Elderly benefits, we project, will be $45.2 billion in 2014-15.
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
4:20 p.m.
Conservative
4:20 p.m.
Liberal
Martha Hall Findlay Liberal Willowdale, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Ms. Harrison, thanks for being here today. I have just a quick question, and because of the lack of time, I ask you to follow up with information to the committee.
It's the second-to-last paragraph in your opening statement, where you talk about the increase of $16.7 million in the operating vote. My first question is this. Can we have this broken down? Unless I've missed it, I don't see a line item of these within the operating expenditures. I will say that it's a significant increase, and we've had real problems with significant increases in departments that are then facing what we're being told would be a freeze next year. The comment is that it's significantly high, so I'm wondering if we can get a line-by-line item of these you've listed out, to see what the $16.7 million accounts for.
Perhaps you can answer in writing to us, in that submission, why part of this is funding for the Canadian securities regulator, when we actually have two separate pieces associated with Canadian securities regulation proposals.
Third is workload in support of the economic action plan and a couple of other things, so my final point is that you say these are time-limited. The economic action plan's huge ramp-up was last year, so I'm not sure why there has to be an increase in the workload associated with it this year. Could you address that in your answers? I would have thought you'd at least have the same, given that the heavy ramp-up was last year.
If these are indeed time-limited and these departments are facing a freeze next year, can we get a commitment that, because these are time-limited, the freeze—the budget that's actually frozen next year—will in fact be $16.7 million less?
I believe you can respond in writing. I know it's difficult, but we're so short of time in this environment that I don't want to take away from my colleague.
4:20 p.m.
Executive Director, Corporate Services Branch, Department of Finance
Okay. I'd be pleased to respond to the increases. Many of them were included in supplementary estimates last year and are sunsetting this year.
4:20 p.m.
Liberal
Martha Hall Findlay Liberal Willowdale, ON
Okay; so even if it's pointing in the right direction. When would you be able to respond to the committee with that? A week, two weeks...?
4:20 p.m.
Executive Director, Corporate Services Branch, Department of Finance
Within a week or two.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
Martha Hall Findlay Liberal Willowdale, ON
Fantastic. Within a week would be really helpful, please. Thank you.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON
I have just a quick question on the securities regulation piece, which I think is a good idea. You've divided it into two parts: $150 million and $11 million—one for a transition office, and then what it says here is establishment of a Canadian securities regulation regime. What's the difference between a transition office and establishment in the first place? I don't quite understand why you divided it into two votes. Why isn't it just $161 million?
4:25 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Financial Sector Policy Branch, Department of Finance
Both of these are a statutory authority, which was granted by Parliament in the budget bill for 2009. The transition office is an organization, which is set up. It has a three-year mandate. Its job is to lead the effort of the federal government to create a Canadian securities regulation regime. It is charged with advising the government on the drafting of the Canadian securities act. It has an advisory committee of participating jurisdictions with whom it meets to discuss these issues. It is also obliged to publish a plan, a transition plan, within a year of its establishment. That deadline will be this coming July.
The budget bill gave it a total budget of $33 million, and $11 million is its plan for expenditures in the current fiscal year.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON
So if Mr. Paillé got his way, would any of this money be spent?
He's wrong, but nevertheless, would he?
4:25 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Financial Sector Policy Branch, Department of Finance
The government's plan is certainly to continue with the work of the transition office. We need to complete the draft securities act and come up with a transition plan, moving forward to negotiate memoranda of understanding with the participating jurisdictions. This will be quite a lot of work. We expect that the transition office will expend the full amount of its budget in the fiscal year.
The $150 million was also authorized in the 2009 budget bill, and this is to allow the Minister of Finance to make payments to participating provinces and territories.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
Massimo Pacetti Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC
OSFI generates revenues for you, doesn't it? Should it be revenue-neutral?
4:25 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Financial Sector Policy Branch, Department of Finance
The largest part of OSFI's expenditures are paid for by assessments on the financial institutions themselves.
4:25 p.m.
Liberal
