Government Operations Committee on June 12th, 2019

[Bill Matthews]

I can take that one.

The principle we'd like to get to with a run of 15 ships is that as you move through the run, you want more risk sharing as you're learning, and then, as you get towards the 15th, or towards the end, we are hoping to have a price cap on each one, as they've learned what they're doing. But earlier on, you'll have a more flexible arrangement, and that is the discussion.... We haven't landed it yet, though.

[The Chair, Conservative, Tom Lukiwski]

Thank you very much.

Madam Yip, you have five minutes, please.

[Jean Yip, Liberal, Scarborough—Agincourt, ON]

Thanks for coming.

With respect to the Translation Bureau, what progress has been made and where are we now with regard to technical challenges and revamping quality control?

[Bill Matthews]

I have a couple of things to highlight. The Translation Bureau has gone through a rather massive transformation, and it's ongoing.

The two things in that industry that I would highlight are the more automated scheduling tools for how the work is assigned, but more importantly, the use of artificial intelligence and tools like that—automated translators—which are changing the nature of the work of translators.

Those who are working with written text have gone more from being word-for-word translators to being more editors, because, using tools, you're able to get a reasonably good quality of translation as a starting point. The nature of the work has changed, and that has helped to drive efficiencies. The workforce is very much onside with the discussion there.

If you were in the world of translating voice, obviously that world hasn't changed very much, so you're still very much dealing with traditional approaches and not a great change that is reforming that industry. There have been some health and safety concerns that I think you may be aware of around auditory issues for translators in that field, and we are working with our employees to deal with those issues.

[Jean Yip, Liberal, Scarborough—Agincourt, ON]

Are materials being translated into languages other than the official languages?

[Bill Matthews]

The biggest change there, Mr. Chair, is in recent additions in both the House and the Senate of indigenous languages. You're seeing, with appropriate notice, the ability to provide translation into languages other than English and French for those purposes. That's relatively new and has gone reasonably well.

In terms of how those languages can take advantage of the artificial intelligence tools, that's not as easy. To make proper use of these AI tools, you need a certain base of translating knowledge that you can feed the system. With some of our indigenous languages, we don't quite yet have the base that we would in English or in French to take advantage of those tools, but that will come with time.

[Jean Yip, Liberal, Scarborough—Agincourt, ON]

Do you have enough translation resources to—

[Bill Matthews]

In general, yes.

[Jean Yip, Liberal, Scarborough—Agincourt, ON]

—follow up on the many indigenous languages?

[Bill Matthews]

There are some that are more challenging than others, Mr. Chair. There is just a lack of speakers, frankly, of some of those languages, so we have been reaching out across various communities so that we can get a broader base of expertise onside as we need it. It's more of a surge capacity.

Those discussions continue. We've been adding to our base of translators as we go, and we will hopefully continue to grow that base in the future.

[Jean Yip, Liberal, Scarborough—Agincourt, ON]

I'm going to share the rest of my time with Ms. Mendès.

[Alexandra Mendes, Liberal, Brossard—Saint-Lambert, QC]

Thank you very much.

Thank you, all, for being here.

My question has to do with translation and interpretation. I've been hearing, for a while now, about how difficult it is to recruit interpreters. That's not the case for translators. Interpreters, however, are in short supply, and it's likely related to health.

Do you have a plan to deal with the shortage of interpreters? Have you found any solutions?

[Bill Matthews]

Thank you for your question.

You're absolutely right. In the past, we had trouble finding people to fill positions. Recently, though, we've started working with universities to develop more programs so we can train more students.

We are working actively with universities to generate more resources in those areas.

The HR plan is obviously critical to the Translation Bureau's long-term success. Those discussions will continue. But there are lots of forums where we bring together our employees, contractors, universities and other experts to actually talk about these challenges, and they've really generated some benefits.

[Alexandra Mendes, Liberal, Brossard—Saint-Lambert, QC]

Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Conservative, Tom Lukiwski]

Mr. Blaikie, no questions?

We'll do one-offs now, if there are other questions.

Seeing none, then, gentlemen and lady, I would like to thank you for being here. I know that sometimes it's a little awkward to come here on short notice, but we do appreciate your attendance here today.

Colleagues, we will suspend for a few moments while we get our next panel to the table.

[The Chair, Conservative, Tom Lukiwski]

Colleagues, I'll call the meeting to order again.

I want to thank the Treasury Board Secretariat for being with us today. We have a number of witnesses before us.

Mr. Purves, welcome back again, sir. It's good to see you again. I understand that you have a brief opening statement. If you could commence with that, sir, and then we'll go directly into questions.

Mr. Purves, the floor is yours.

[Glenn Purves, Assistant Secretary, Expenditure Management Sector, Treasury Board Secretariat]

Thank you very much, Chair, and thank you to committee members. Good afternoon.

I'll be as brief as I can to allow for as much time for questions as possible.

Again, thank you for inviting us today to speak about the estimates. The main estimates present financial requirements for the 2019-20 fiscal year, including but not in addition to the amounts already shown in the interim estimates.

Part I of the document, the Government Expenditure Plan, gives an overview of spending requirements for 2019-20 and comparisons to previous fiscal years.

Part II, the departmental Main Estimates, provides information on planned spending by each federal organization requesting authority through the appropriation bill.

Additional details are available online, including forecasts of statutory spending, allocations from Treasury Board central votes, and expenditures by program or purpose.

Finally, I would remind the committee that the Government of Canada Infobase is also available to provide you with more information on authorities and expenditures.

Mr. Chair, the main estimates for 2019-20 present a total of $299.6 billion in planned budgetary expenditures. Of this amount, $125.6 billion is for voted expenditures, while $174 billion is forecast to be spent under statutory authorities.

Of the $125.6 billion in voted spending, the largest departments are the Department of National Defence, at $20.5 billion; the Department of Indigenous Services Canada, at $12.2 billion; Treasury Board Secretariat, at $7 billion; the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, at $6.9 billion; and the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development, at $6.4 billion.

Voted expenditures are approximately $12.7 billion higher than the previous main estimates, including $6 billion for budget 2019 initiatives.

The increase in voted expenditures also reflects funding decisions made prior to budget 2019, including additional funding to settle outstanding claims, advance reconciliation and improve services and infrastructure in indigenous communities; the ramping up of infrastructure spending under the investing in Canada plan and the new building Canada fund, as well as the Gordie Howe International Bridge; increased capital spending for Canadian Coast Guard ships and VIA Rail trains; and increased funding to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect species and habitat.

Of the $174 billion in statutory spending, the largest components are benefits for the elderly, at $56.2 billion; the Canada health transfer, at $40.4 billion; public debt charges, at $24.7 billion; fiscal equalization, at $19.8 billion; and the Canada social transfer, at $14.6 billion.

The estimates do not include payments from the employment insurance operating account or expenditures legislated through the Income Tax Act, such as the Canada child benefit.

In terms of individual departments, four have increases of over $3 billion in comparison to last year's main estimates.

For the Department of Finance, the $5 billion increase relates to a $2.1 billion increase in interest on unmatured debt due to the upward revision of forecasted interest rates by private sector economists, and increases in the Canada health transfer, fiscal equalization and the Canada social transfer.

The Office of Infrastructure of Canada sees a $4.6 billion increase, due mostly to an additional $2.2 billion through the gas tax fund to address short-term priorities in municipalities and first nation communities as announced in budget 2019, and an increase in $2.1 billion in contributions under the investing in Canada plan, the P3 Canada fund and the new building Canada plan.

The Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development increase of $3.9 billion relates to settlements for federal day schools, the sixties scoop and specific claims.

The $3.8 billion year-over-year increase for the Department of Employment and Social Development relates primarily to a $2.8 billion increase in benefits to the elderly, due to changes in the average monthly rate and in the number of beneficiaries. The department also has a total of $333 million in budget 2019 funding for a wide range of initiatives.

There is one particularly significant decrease, $6.6 billion, for Treasury Board Secretariat, which relates to the one-year funding of budget 2018 initiatives across the government.

With that, Mr. Chair, I will hand it over to you for questions.

[The Chair, Conservative, Tom Lukiwski]

Thank you very much.

We'll start with a five-minute round, beginning with Madam Ratansi, please.

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

Thank you for being here.

I was looking at your departmental plans, and there is this question of financial risk that departments have to talk about. Could you first explain, with the various departments you have—your multiple departments—what your definition of “financial risk” is?

For example, with the seniors department, you're talking about the aging population and how we will have to match the payment of OAS. How does a department, which has to manage its budget and provide its departmental plans, determine...? It can't do 100%, but you want to move from the present 13% to 75%. What do you do? How does the department work its financial risks?

[Karen Cahill, Assistant Secretary and Chief Financial Officer, Treasury Board Secretariat]

In our departmental plan, the statement about financial risk is not as much related to our own financial risk as the guidance we give other departments on financial risk. We have the centre of excellence for costing under the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, and what we are trying to do is educate people on how to best calculate or be cognizant of their financial risk.

What we're trying to achieve as a plan is to ensure that people, other government departments, have a better sense of how to establish their financial risk, especially when they're costing their initiatives. That's not necessarily the financial risk that we're talking about in the departmental plan. That does not necessarily pertain to our own department, per se, but it pertains to the work we're doing with other government departments.

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

I'm not talking about your department. You are the centre that takes in—

[Karen Cahill]

Yes. That's the guidance we're giving to other government departments.

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

There are so many diverse ways to do risk assessment—

[Karen Cahill]

Yes.

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

—and you're doing financial risk assessment, which is the biggest one. How have you taught these departments to mitigate those risks, or what are some of the best practices that you have established so that departments...? At the moment only 13%, in my reading, are able to talk about their financial risks and you want to increase it to 75%—