Evidence of meeting #47 for Industry, Science and Technology in the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was million.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:05 p.m.
Bloc
Robert Vincent Bloc Shefford, QC
In the interim, will there be additional jobs created as a result of these investments, in March 2011?
4:05 p.m.
Deputy Minister and President, Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec
That will happen as the applications come in. I should point out that, in our case, in Quebec, because of Bill M-30, we proceeded via federal-provincial agreement. Municipalities and school boards are provincial institutions, and there is legislation in place that provides for that. As regards municipalities, there were elections in November across the province, and that certainly slowed the application rate.
4:05 p.m.
Bloc
Robert Vincent Bloc Shefford, QC
People have told us that the forms should be modified, to make them easier to understand, rather than hiring people to complete them. Have these forms been modified?
4:05 p.m.
Deputy Minister and President, Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec
Ms. Brassard is responsible for that area. I am going to bring her in here.
I believe we can always make things easier for people, but I must say that I, personally, have not received any such feedback.
4:10 p.m.
Vice-President, Operations, Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec
The form is the one used in Quebec, since Quebec has overall responsibility, and therefore, the Quebec form is the one that's used. We have not been made aware of any particular problems in terms of completing it. We have a committee that manages the agreement, and if we receive this kind of feedback or suggestions on how to improve the product or the form, we will be very pleased to simplify things to the extent that we can.
4:10 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Michael Chong
Thank you for your questions, Mr. Vincent.
Mr. Wallace, please.
4:10 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you for joining us today. I love dealing with estimates because I like the technical side of it.
Let's start with Atlantic Canada. Then I have specific questions, just for my education, and then a general question that relates to all three--but I want to pick on Quebec, because I'm missing something and I need to know--and then some more general questions about the estimates process.
On the estimates that ACOA has provided, I have two really basic questions about them. The transfers that have the brackets around them mean a deduction in the transfers. Are those transfers internal transfers or are they transfers from other departments? Why are there brackets around those transfers in 1b and 5b? Then we add money in appropriations and balance, but I'm interested in knowing why those numbers have brackets.
4:10 p.m.
Denise Frenette Vice-President, Finance and Corporate Services, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
The transaction you're referring to is related to a writeoff that the agency needs to do. In order to do that, there was a special vote created at Treasury Board, so—
4:10 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
Are you sure that's not under 7b? The writeoff's under 7b. I don't have any explanation of the $456,000 and the $279,000 higher up in 1b and 5b. In 7b, there's an explanation of a writeoff, and I'm going to ask you about the writeoff.
4:10 p.m.
Vice-President, Finance and Corporate Services, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Okay, let me just get a copy.
It's under 1b?
4:10 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
Under 1b of supplementary estimates (B)—I have all three books here and sometimes I get mixed up—there's some $456,000 transferred down, and then you're asking for $330,000 in terms of an appropriation for a balance of $88 million. But is that $456,000 a writeoff?
4:10 p.m.
Vice-President, Finance and Corporate Services, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Yes.
4:10 p.m.
Vice-President, Finance and Corporate Services, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
We have a loan that was transferred to ACOA upon its creation. It's related to the Newfoundland and Labrador Development Corporation.
4:10 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
When I look at the next page in my book under “Transfers”, it states: “Internal reallocation of resources–Write-off of debts due to the Crown pertaining to loans made by the Newfoundland and Labrador Development Corporation”. There's a two-piece writeoff and then a balance to balance that. That comes to $736,000. Oh, I see. Those add up to the same thing.
4:10 p.m.
Vice-President, Finance and Corporate Services, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
It's the same thing.
4:10 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
Okay. Why are we writing that off? I guess that's my question.
4:10 p.m.
Vice-President, Finance and Corporate Services, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
The debt was transferred upon ACOA's creation. It related to the Newfoundland and Labrador Development Corporation. When ACOA inherited the debt, our only responsibility was to manage that loan. We've exhausted all possible avenues to collect the loans, so we're now proceeding with the writeoff.
4:10 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
So those are bad debts.
Do you normally have in your main estimates a piece for bad debt writeoff? Do you allocate for bad debts on a normal yearly basis?
4:10 p.m.
Vice-President, Finance and Corporate Services, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
No.
4:10 p.m.
Conservative
4:10 p.m.
Vice-President, Finance and Corporate Services, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
It's an exception to the rule because of the way the debt was created.
4:10 p.m.
President , Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
It started in 1972, I believe.
4:10 p.m.
Conservative