Government Operations Committee on June 16th, 2020

[Alison McDermott]

No. Thank you.

[Steven MacKinnon, Liberal, Gatineau, QC]

Okay.

Mr. Purves, in terms of Treasury Board, you're applying your regular rigorous oversight to spending, whether it be regular spending or exceptional spending under COVID, such as those items contained in these supplementary estimates.

[Glenn Purves]

Yes, absolutely. Everything that's in these supplementary estimates has been through Treasury Board ministers.

[Steven MacKinnon, Liberal, Gatineau, QC]

For the benefit of the members of the committee, can you outline the process of how departments would bring these proposals to you, and how they would construct their cases for spending the money that has been allocated to them, either by Parliament or by virtue of a law passed by Parliament?

[Glenn Purves]

Sure. It's been a little more unusual this time around, just because of the urgency of the COVID-19 response. Typically, you have statutory authorities that exist for a whole host of different initiatives. Transfers to people and transfers to other levels of government are typically done through statutory authorities. Then a lot of the direct program spending is done, as we say, through the main estimates and through supplementary estimates as additional funding is required.

In terms of dealing with the COVID-19 dislocation, there really was a combination of statutory authorities sought, as well as voted authorities. For the items you see in respect to these supplementary estimates, they've gone to Treasury Board in submissions, as they normally would, and they go through the rigour that they would normally go through. In terms of the statutory items, despite the fact that they may not be getting expenditure authority and then going for voted appropriations in Parliament, if there are programs, terms and conditions that require Treasury Board policy issues, that require Treasury Board oversight, Treasury Board has been doing the regular due diligence and rigour that they normally do on these instances.

I would say that Treasury Board as an institution has been operating very efficiently, has been very busy over the last few months and has been having a lot of rigour on many of these items that go through and that would normally go through Treasury Board, given program authority parameters and so forth.

[Steven MacKinnon, Liberal, Gatineau, QC]

I want to take this opportunity to extend to all of you and, through you, to all public servants, as a local MP and a member of Parliament for Gatineau, best wishes for a good National Public Service Week. It's been an incredibly extenuating and trying time for everyone, for public servants and, I know, many senior public servants like all of you.

Thank you very much for your perseverance and creativity.

[The Chair, Conservative, Tom Lukiwski]

Thank you very much.

Colleagues, our colleague Mr. Green will not be with us for the final round, so we only have one intervention left. That would be for Mr. Barsalou-Duval for two and a half minutes.

[Matthew Green, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

I am here.

[The Chair, Conservative, Tom Lukiwski]

Oh, you're back.

We will first go to Monsieur Barsalou-Duval for two and a half minutes, please.

[Xavier Barsalou-Duval, Bloc, Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC]

Mr. Chair, my question is for the Health Canada officials who are with us today.

Of the requested supplementary budgets, $16.1 million will go to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

In recent months, I have often been approached by citizens who complain that indicating the exact source of processed foods sold at the grocery store is not mandatory. Why does the Canadian Food Inspection Agency not have a policy requiring that the source of products be displayed? People have the right to know what they are buying and where their food comes from.

[Glenn Purves]

I'd be happy to pass along those views to CFIA.

I may be mistaken, but I thought I heard you say that Health officials were here.

[The Chair, Conservative, Tom Lukiwski]

Mr. Purves, that was not a mishearing. I believe Mr. Barsalou-Duval did say there were Health officials here. I'm not sure they are.

[Glenn Purves]

Okay.

In terms of that issue—

[Xavier Barsalou-Duval, Bloc, Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC]

I'm sorry, I was sure Health Canada officials were here.

I have a second question, and it's about advertising. Earlier, we were told that the initial $50 million was for COVID-19. We then asked why this amount had not been included in another line item, and we were told that it had been included in that way because the funds are not only allocated for COVID-19 and that the advertising could be used for other purposes.

Did I understand you correctly? What else would it be used for?

[Glenn Purves]

This is the $50 million for the Privy Council Office for the funding of communications and marketing. Is that correct?

[The Chair, Conservative, Tom Lukiwski]

I believe that is correct, sir. Please give a very brief response, if you could.

[Glenn Purves]

Okay.

Again, really it's funding for a whole-of-government communication and marketing response, which I believe is probably consistent with what my PCO colleagues mentioned, in four key areas: public health information, financial support for individuals, financial support for businesses and the economy, and public safety and security information.

I don't know if my Finance colleague wants to jump in on that....

Did we lose sound?

[Xavier Barsalou-Duval, Bloc, Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC]

Mr. Chair, are you here? I don't think we can hear the chair.

[The Clerk]

Mr. Chair, I believe you are muted.

[The Chair, Conservative, Tom Lukiwski]

Can you hear me now, Paul? Can you see me or hear me?

[The Clerk]

Yes. We can see you and hear you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Tom Lukiwski]

For some reason, my computer went down for a few moments.

Mr. Green, you are up for two and a half minutes.

[Matthew Green, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Thank you very much.

I was delighted to see that the Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations included in one of their major items the request for.... Well, I'm not delighted that the request had to be made, but here we are. The money is finally here. It includes compensation for persons who attended federally established, funded, controlled and operated Indian day schools.

It also includes monies that will be used for legal and administration fees. How much money in this supplementary did the government spend on this litigation?

[Glenn Purves]

Mr. Green, are we talking about federal Indian day schools in terms of the McLean settlement agreement and not the sixties scoop?

[Matthew Green, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Yes, that's correct.