Fisheries Committee on Oct. 29th, 2009

[Michaela Huard]

I'd have to look at that, because we have our regular budget and then there are projects under the economic action plan. I would have to see what part of it.... Perhaps there was something that was already funded.

Many times we have multiple requests from one particular harbour for a wharf.

[Gerard Kennedy, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Could you undertake to get back to this committee in writing on the status of this particular—

[Michaela Huard]

Sure.

I would just like to add, if I could, that sometimes people will ask for a project for a breakwater, and they will also look for a project for a wharf for the following year, and they may also need replacement of an electrical panel as a third project. So perhaps there was one project in 2008 that was already entrained, and the rest is the economic action plan. I'd have to check.

[Gerard Kennedy, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Sure. I didn't want to put you on the spot to speculate, but I assume we have the right person here and that you would have been responsible for this information. It seems to be a bit at variance with other information. So could you undertake to get back to this committee in writing and verify if this project belongs in this book? Because I think right now a question has at least been raised about that. Okay?

[Michaela Huard]

Sure, no problem.

[The Chair, Conservative, Rodney Weston]

Mr. MacAulay.

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

Thank you very much.

Welcome.

On the stimulus funding, how many dollars went into small craft harbour repair? And do you have it broken down by region? My interest would be in the Atlantic region—or the maritime region, in fact. But do you have the figures for what extra dollars were put in by the stimulus package? I ask because of the situation in Prince Edward Island, with the infrastructure that we have there. Of course, you're not going to know about different harbours right off the bat, but we have harbours like Annandale, Red Head, and Mink River, and these are in desperate shape for funding. We have the stimulus funding that's supposed to come in place to create work. So I just wonder what its standing is, what dollars were allotted and where.

[Michaela Huard]

There are over 250 projects, as I say. If I look at the economic action plan funding by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, for instance, starting with Newfoundland and Labrador, there's $52 million over two years—that is, from the $200 million over two years. For the Maritimes and gulf region, including Prince Edward Island, there is $87 million; for Quebec. $22 million; for our central and Arctic region, $7 million; and for the Pacific region, $22 million. Now, those are rough numbers; I haven't given you the decimal points.

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

Okay. What you're telling me is that there's $87 million for the gulf region?

[Michaela Huard]

For the Maritimes and gulf.

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

For the maritime region and the gulf.

[Michaela Huard]

The Maritimes and gulf. I'm using the DFO terminology.

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

Can you supply to this committee, if you don't have it now, where the dollars were allocated, what wharves they're allocated to, and what dollars were spent?

[Michaela Huard]

There have been announcements made with respect to the specific projects. We can provide those.

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

Can you also inform the committee what has been announced and where we are in terms of progress?

[Michaela Huard]

We know the number of projects under way. I believe my colleague has the specific breakdown. We know that of the 250 projects, we anticipate—

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

But that's Canada-wide.

[Michaela Huard]

Yes

We know that 230 of these projects Canada-wide are under way. They've either been tendered, or some of them have been finished, and some of them are in the engineering and planning phase.

[Gerard Kennedy, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Just very quickly, can you tell us how many jobs have been generated by those projects under way?

[Michaela Huard]

I'd have to get back to you specifically. Actually, with respect to the specific number of jobs, we didn't ask contractors to tell us how many jobs they have created in particular, but we do have a number overall.

[Gerard Kennedy, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

So you're not tracking the jobs? You're not tracking the jobs created by your projects?

[Michaela Huard]

The centre who has prepared these reports has used economic analysis to determine the number of jobs created.

[Gerard Kennedy, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

I'll take that as a no, but thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Rodney Weston]

Monsieur Blais.

[Raynald Blais, Bloc, Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine, QC]

Good day. It is always a pleasure to speak to two women representing the department responsible for small craft harbours. This is a sign of progress and hopefully, a reflection of the department's new approach to doing business.

This brings me to my first question. In May 2007, the former Director General, Mr. Robert Bergeron, informed us that 28% of infrastructures deemed essential to the Small Crafts Harbour Program were in a poor state of repair or even unsafe.

That was back in May 2007. What percentage of harbours would be in this condition today?