Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I'd like to add my voice to my colleagues' to thank all the witnesses for the work they have done during this pandemic. We hope that they and their families remain safe and sound during the pandemic.
I have a few questions, Mr. Chair, and it might take more or less time. It will all depend on the answers. So I hope you'll cut me a little slack over the next few minutes.
I want to start by following up on the minister's comments around the emergency wage subsidy program and that the improper use of it, such as dividend payments, stock buybacks and executive bonuses, is something that is not tolerated.
I would like to know a couple of things on that. First off, do we have an indication from the ministry of finance what the rate of non-compliance is? How are those cases of non-compliance generated? Is it complaint-based or is it something that is investigated, for example, when there are articles in the Financial Post, where dozens of companies were cited that had paid out dividends and received massive amounts of subsidies at the same time?
Then, what is the process, whether the complaint is from the outside or is flagged internally? Do you contact the company? Do you issue a notice? Are you investigating or is there an attempt at prosecution?
This is my global question. What are you doing in response to these widespread complaints about improper use of wage subsidy and other government programs by very profitable Canadian corporations?