Evidence of meeting #38 for Government Operations and Estimates in the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was advertising.
A recording is available from Parliament.
5:25 p.m.
Conservative
Ed Holder Conservative London West, ON
No, it's a point of order. Thank you.
We were very clear about three minutes. By my watch, Madam Hall Findlay was speaking for clearly more than three minutes. I'm wondering how assiduously...because you're usually extremely good at this. It just felt as though it was way over.
5:25 p.m.
Conservative
Ed Holder Conservative London West, ON
No, I'm not, actually; this is a point of order.
It seemed to me that the unfairness of this is that if Madam Hall Findlay was going to do it within the prescribed timeframe, I respect that, but you didn't rule it done at three minutes, and I'm curious as to why.
5:25 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Yasmin Ratansi
Mr. Holder, from now on I'm going to cut off even witnesses, because I've allowed eight minutes, five minutes.... I have been lenient, because I feel it's important for you guys to put this to bed.
She had her motion. She didn't have to read it; she just had to present it, and that would have been it. Then Mr. Warkentin walked over here and that got Ms. Hall Findlay talking, so I couldn't even shut her up there.
5:25 p.m.
Some hon. members
Oh, oh!
5:25 p.m.
Liberal
5:25 p.m.
Conservative
Ed Holder Conservative London West, ON
I dare say I would never shut up Ms. Hall Findlay. She says such thoughtful things.
5:25 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Yasmin Ratansi
I didn't mean it in a derogatory manner, but if you disturb the chair she has to pay attention somewhere else.
Go ahead.
5:25 p.m.
Conservative
Ed Holder Conservative London West, ON
Thank you very much.
I had the opportunity recently to do an interview on CFRB 1010 radio on the issue of prop cheques, which I have heard discussed already. It was rather interesting, because I was certainly proud to make a presentation to my community with my colleagues from various levels of government. Let me tell you how we did it in London, Ontario.
On the prop cheque we had the logos of the federal government; the Government of Ontario; and London, Ontario, the tenth-largest city in Canada. We had three representative signatures on that cheque from me, a Liberal MPP, and the deputy mayor of London. We may be unique, but we have a New Democratic Party member and a Liberal member in our city, so those two federal members were pleased to join me with the cheque and present it, along with several members of provincial government and council. We were delighted to do that. I was there on my behalf, not representing a minister.
Was there anything in my conduct or that of the Liberal or NDP member that would suggest anything was inappropriately done?
5:25 p.m.
Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet, Privy Council Office
We'll have to give you the boring response again on how the communication policy works or does not work. We apologize.
Michelle.
5:25 p.m.
Secretary of the Treasury Board, Treasury Board Secretariat
You mentioned the famous words that you were “not acting on behalf of”.
5:25 p.m.
Secretary of the Treasury Board, Treasury Board Secretariat
Therefore, none of the policy requirements would apply.
5:25 p.m.
Liberal
5:25 p.m.
NDP
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
Just before you conclude, I asked that some of those door hangers be tabled. I want to be sure we get those in the next day or two.
5:25 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Yasmin Ratansi
Thank you.
I'd like to thank the witnesses. The committee has been studying the stimulus package, because everybody understands that the job of the government operations and estimates committee is to ensure good, effective, and efficient utilization of government dollars. So in terms of the stimulus package, the communications package, we need to understand whether there is a return on investment.
I have been listening to your response, and I am a little concerned that you could not give us the dollar value of the signage when you stated specifically that in your analysis you do get those signage dollars.
So please get that over to us, and tell us how much of the stimulus package of $3 billion was rapidly deployed. We will send you those questions.
I think a question was asked by the Conservative on the return on investment of that $45 million to $50 million that has been spent.
With that, I'd like to give them 30 seconds to finish....
5:30 p.m.
Conservative
Chris Warkentin Conservative Peace River, AB
On a point of order, Madam Chair, I don't think there was consensus around the table on that, after they dialogued with us that finding the cost of the signage across the country would be next to impossible. I don't think we as a committee asked for that.
5:30 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Yasmin Ratansi
Madam Foote did. If you check the blues later, I'm sorry, you will see that she did ask. As a committee member, she's allowed to get it, and we will want it from the bureaucrats.
If you don't mind, I'd to give them the courtesy of wrapping up.
Thank you.
Mr. Wouters is next and then Madam d'Auray.
November 3rd, 2009 / 5:30 p.m.
Secretary of the Treasury Board, Treasury Board Secretariat
On the question about the signage, if you want us to produce that information it will take us a couple of months to pull that together. My colleague indicated that it is across departments and organizations. This is a rolling issue. This is not something that we can produce tomorrow morning at the click of a button.
5:30 p.m.
Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet, Privy Council Office
I guess the only thing I would add is that we are often criticized here by this committee, and when I was at the public accounts committee, about the amount of reporting we ask our departments to do. You are now asking them to pull together--which is going to be very difficult--a set of information for which they're going to have to go back, right down through to their own offices across the country, to get this information.
