Industry Committee on June 10th, 2010

[Claude Gravelle, NDP, Nickel Belt, ON]

Thank you.

[Richard Dicerni]

You are welcome.

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

Merci, monsieur Gravelle.

Mr. Rota.

[Anthony Rota, Liberal, Nipissing—Timiskaming, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you for being here this morning.

I'll save my FedNor question for my second question and start off with something else. I'll just carry on a bit with what Mr. Wallace was talking about, about FedDev and IRAP working together and how there seems to have been a transfer that has gone over to IRAP. That money was in place to allow the program to hit the road running and get in place. IRAP had the networks in place and ready to go, so the money for FedDev went to IRAP. The money went out and it was allotted the second year, giving it the chance to do the same thing, basically, because I would image the infrastructure isn't quite in place.

How long does it normally take to get infrastructure in place? Also, how much of that money went to infrastructure for FedDev so that it can be ready to distribute the funds that would help with economic development?

[Richard Dicerni]

I have somebody who'll get back to you on the specifics in terms of where they're at.

When the government announced that FedDev was to be based in Kitchener-Waterloo, we had a head office established and we found some space there. There were a few offices that already existed—one in Peterborough and one in Stratford—but that was it. The notion of set-up is quite far-ranging because it goes, obviously, to real estate, but it's also about setting up your IT system to ensure you can communicate. It also goes to recruitment of staff. It also—

[Anthony Rota, Liberal, Nipissing—Timiskaming, ON]

How long does that normally take? More than—

[Richard Dicerni]

I don't think there's a normal period of time.

The other aspect is the external networks. I know that they hired an ADM, for example, to be based in Kitchener, and the person started in February.

Before that person is able to establish his network within the community, to know who the persons are at the chamber of commerce who they can deal with, and at the economic development agency... In Kingston, it's Bob King, and you should really deal with Bob King, because he's credible and he knows what he's talking about. To establish those networks, to know the small and medium-sized businesses, it takes some amount of time. So I assume the view of the minister was to capitalize on the exiting IRAP networks and—

[Anthony Rota, Liberal, Nipissing—Timiskaming, ON]

If you don't mind, I appreciate the IRAP, and maybe this is more of a political question than anything else. I was just wondering how much of it actually went out and was invested in this infrastructure or the actual bureaucracy for FedDev, my concern being that there is an ideology that says they don't believe in regional economic development, so to put it out in a network that already exists and then just be able to claw it back at a later date... But that's just a hypothesis that I've put in my own mind, and I won't trouble you with that.

[Richard Dicerni]

You can appreciate that we don't deal with hypotheticals--

[Anthony Rota, Liberal, Nipissing—Timiskaming, ON]

I'll go to my next question, if you don't mind, about FedNor.

On May 13 we had the minister here. I was very specific in asking for a breakdown of the estimates for FedNor, because they weren't in place. The minister promised them, as he did in his prior visit, I think, a couple of visits before. What we got was a beautiful pamphlet with pictures. This time we didn't even get the beautiful pamphlet.

I was just wondering where that sat. I'm sure he would have asked you to put the numbers together. Are they in process? Are we about to get them shortly? I believe they were to be given to the chair of this committee. Are you aware of where that's at?

[Richard Dicerni]

Yes and yes.

[Anthony Rota, Liberal, Nipissing—Timiskaming, ON]

Yes and yes? They are in process?

[Richard Dicerni]

They are in process and, yes, you will get them.

[Anthony Rota, Liberal, Nipissing—Timiskaming, ON]

Okay. It's funny, because I was told by the minister that these are very obvious and that it was me who couldn't find them, and when Industry Canada can't find them, or it takes a while to put them together, I would be very... I'm just trying to make sense of what the minister said, which is very difficult at times.

[Richard Dicerni]

Well, for the record I take objection--

[Voices]

Oh, oh!

[Richard Dicerni]

--but we'll respond--

[Anthony Rota, Liberal, Nipissing—Timiskaming, ON]

I'll get the breakdown--

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

And as soon as the clerk receives it, she will distribute it.

[Anthony Rota, Liberal, Nipissing—Timiskaming, ON]

I'm just hoping for a quick response as opposed to a lengthy one, or a non-response like last time. I'm not blaming Industry Canada. I'm sure the minister's office is--

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

The deputy minister's staff have noted your request for a timely response.

[Anthony Rota, Liberal, Nipissing—Timiskaming, ON]

Very good. Thank you. Those were my questions.

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

Do we have any further questions?

Mr. Wallace.

[Mike Wallace, Conservative, Burlington, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you again for the few minutes.

I only have four, so you're almost out of here.

There is funding for subatomic and—my friend Mr. Garneau would like this—there is life science funding for a facility that is already funded. I want to know what the level of funding is, how long it has been around, how long we've been funding it, and what we are expecting to achieve at Industry from funding this facility.

[Kelly Gillis]

For the funding that's in here, supplementary estimates (A), the $25.7 million, that relates to funding that was committed in budget 2010, where five-year funding for $126 million was provided. That's the funding that you're looking at.