Evidence of meeting #222 for Finance in the 42nd Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was million.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Tom Kmiec Conservative Calgary Shepard, AB
Could you provide that information to the committee later?
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, International Trade and Finance Branch, Department of Finance
Certainly. The last ones did go out in the first quarter, but we'll verify whether that is a requirement.
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, International Trade and Finance Branch, Department of Finance
That was for the last two years. We've made two payments to date.
Conservative
Tom Kmiec Conservative Calgary Shepard, AB
Okay.
My next question is going to be just on one of the budgetary line items here. It says, “other interest costs”. What is “other interest costs”? That's a significant amount of money, and it's actually decreasing year over year. I know what “interest on unmatured debt” is, but as for "other interest costs”, what is that?
Chief Financial Officer, Department of Finance
That's the interest on the public sector pensions, and it's based on a 20-year average long-term bond rate, which is decreasing.
Conservative
Tom Kmiec Conservative Calgary Shepard, AB
My next question, then, is this. On the back side there is authorization being sought for additional monies for ministers' salaries and motor car allowances, for $87,700. What is that for, exactly? Is that a new minister's salary boost and car allowance?
Chief Financial Officer, Department of Finance
I think that shouldn't be anything unusual. It should be typical of the costs we typically have, so I don't think there's anything new there.
Chief Financial Officer, Department of Finance
If there is, maybe it's refurbishment for a new car.
Conservative
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Wayne Easter
Can somebody answer for OSFI here? I believe there is someone. We will hold your time.
Conservative
Tom Kmiec Conservative Calgary Shepard, AB
My questions are general to OSFI's program domestically for the D-SIBs. That's the acronym for the domestic systemically important banks. One of the capital requirements went from 1.75% to 2%. I want to know why that was.
For the D-SIBs, one of the capital requirements has gone up 0.25% to 2%. I want to get more information from you on why that was, and why that was being done.
Michele Bridges Managing Director, Finance and Corporate Planning, Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions
Could you refer me to where in the main estimates?
Conservative
Tom Kmiec Conservative Calgary Shepard, AB
It's program expenditures. It's all the work that OSFI is responsible for.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Financial Sector Policy Branch, Department of Finance
Would you be referring to the domestic stability buffer increase recently announced?
Conservative
Tom Kmiec Conservative Calgary Shepard, AB
Is that the correct acronym for it? There are tons of acronyms on OSFI's website.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Financial Sector Policy Branch, Department of Finance
There are a lot of acronyms.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Financial Sector Policy Branch, Department of Finance
I wouldn't think that would be an item for the main estimates, but just on the domestic stability buffer, it is a buffer that the superintendent puts in place to help domestically support systemically important banks and to deal with the range of vulnerabilities in the economy, such as high household indebtedness, for example.
Conservative
Tom Kmiec Conservative Calgary Shepard, AB
Is there a particular reason that the increase happened now, as opposed to just a few years ago?
Assistant Deputy Minister, Financial Sector Policy Branch, Department of Finance
It's a function of the observation of vulnerabilities in the economy.
Conservative
Tom Kmiec Conservative Calgary Shepard, AB
Is there anything particularly different that has happened over the past four years that's warranted an increase? I can quote tons of numbers on the residential debt having gone up, such as homeowner debt. Other debts have gone down as a proportion of it. Is there still something in particular?