Evidence of meeting #18 for Industry, Science and Technology in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was projects.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:35 p.m.
Liberal
4:35 p.m.
Liberal
Majid Jowhari Liberal Richmond Hill, ON
I have a quick question on stem cell funding. I understand that we allocated $12 million for that in budget 2016, but in your opening remarks you mentioned you are requesting $6 million of that $12 million to be brought as part of the new spending, so I'm a bit confused. Can you explain to me whether this $12 million was allocated and why you are now pulling $6 million forward—or is this new, increased funding?
4:35 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Science and Innovation, Department of Industry
This is new funding of $12 million, or $6 million annually, so we're seeking the first $6 million of that two-year funding in these supplementary estimates (A).
4:35 p.m.
Liberal
Majid Jowhari Liberal Richmond Hill, ON
Okay, we're going to start next year, and the year after, and that for each $6 million we're just pulling forward the next year's $6 million.
4:40 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Science and Innovation, Department of Industry
It's two years of funding, $6 million for this fiscal year and $6 million for next fiscal year.
4:40 p.m.
Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Management Sector, Department of Industry
You will see the next $6 million in the main estimates next year.
4:40 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Dan Ruimy
That's bang on five minutes. You get a gold star.
Mr. Webber, you have five minutes.
4:40 p.m.
Conservative
Len Webber Conservative Calgary Confederation, AB
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'll likely share some of that time with my colleague here.
Thank you for being here today. This is my first meeting at this particular standing committee. It's a pleasure to be here. I serve on the health standing committee, so this is relatively new. We have our estimates tomorrow, so hopefully our health minister will be there. I do find it shocking that the minister is not here today. No disrespect, but in my 10 years with the Alberta legislature, in all the estimates I sat through, the minister was there. I just want to send a message to the minister that hopefully next time he will be here.
I have a question with regard to what Mr. Enns talked about, the $500-million post-secondary institutions strategic investment fund. It's a significant amount of money, and I'm curious to know where that money is going to specifically. What post-secondary institutions are they? Do you have a list of dollars and where they're going to be going?
The reason I ask is that I have three post-secondary institutions in my riding in Calgary centre, which is called Calgary Confederation, but it's in the centre of Calgary. I have the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology there, the University of Calgary, and the Alberta College of Art and Design.
Are any of those institutions receiving any of this money?
June 7th, 2016 / 4:40 p.m.
Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Management Sector, Department of Industry
Once again, I'll defer to my colleague who is actually responsible for the delivery of that program. He'll be able to give you some information on that.
4:40 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Science and Innovation, Department of Industry
I'm not in a position to say at this point which institutions are receiving funds. We are still in the project assessment stage, and we're still working with provinces and territories who are identifying their priorities as well under the program. We are hoping to be able to reach agreement with provinces and territories on projects, and then subsequent project announcements over the June-July time frame.
4:40 p.m.
Conservative
Len Webber Conservative Calgary Confederation, AB
Okay.
Is the June-July timeframe when you hope to have the list available for the public to see?
4:40 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Science and Innovation, Department of Industry
That's correct.
What will happen is that we'll have a contribution agreement with each province and territory, and the list of agreed-upon projects will be an annex or a schedule to that agreement. Obviously, institutions will be notified immediately upon that. Part of the issue of this program is that we are trying to move it forward quickly, because part of its benefit is stimulative. The intent is for the preponderance of the work to be done this construction season, and then the subsequent construction season.
4:40 p.m.
Conservative
Len Webber Conservative Calgary Confederation, AB
Who does the assessing to determine who gets what?
4:40 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Science and Innovation, Department of Industry
As indicated earlier, we are conducting an assessment of all the individual projects, the extent to which they meet the terms and conditions of the program, and fulfill the merit criteria of the program, and the extent to which provinces and territories themselves are willing to identify individual projects as priorities. On that basis, individual decisions will be made in conjunction with the provinces and territories on which projects will be funded.
4:40 p.m.
Conservative
Len Webber Conservative Calgary Confederation, AB
I'd like to move on to another area of curiosity for me, and that is the $2.6 million, going to FedNor, northern Ontario, to support community infrastructure up there in celebration of Canada's 150th anniversary.
Can you give me some more detail on what infrastructure projects are going to be built up there to celebrate our 150th?
4:40 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Strategic Policy Sector, Department of Industry
The answer here is similar to that provided about the other regional agencies.
This is a community infrastructure program. This will provide an opportunity to fund more projects in FedNor's area of responsibility. These are the types of projects that my colleague referred to before, such as upgrades to recreational centres, community centres, areas of broad public benefit which can commemorate our anniversary, but also improve that kind of infrastructure in communities.
It's smaller projects, and it's based on existing infrastructure. We're not talking about building new things, but certainly enhancing and improving the community infrastructure that's in place and then being able to make that part of the commemoration of the 150th anniversary of Canada. This will allow FedNor to take on more projects than it would have otherwise done.
4:45 p.m.
Conservative
Len Webber Conservative Calgary Confederation, AB
There are dollars allocated to our northern Alberta communities, especially around Fort McMurray with the fires. That is just a comment there.
A real quick question?
4:45 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Dan Ruimy
Sorry, we're over and above our time.
We're going to go to Mr. Baylis for five minutes.
4:45 p.m.
Liberal
Frank Baylis Liberal Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC
I'm going to focus on the NRC in my questions.
First of all, I noticed that, as you said, that NSERC is using about 4% of their budget to deliver their programs, some $43 million, and are delivering over $1 billion in grants.
When I look at the NRC, I see a different picture. You had mentioned, first of all, IRAP and how that has changed, but I have the last 10 years of IRAP's operating budget. In 2005, it was $48,600,000. In 2015, it's $48,100,000. It's the same number of dollar terms, but in buying power, it has actually gone down, but they're delivering way more. I see a huge increase in efficiency in IRAP.
However, when I look at the overall NRC program, I see that their operating budget exceeds their grants significantly. Why is that?
4:45 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Science and Innovation, Department of Industry
Do you mean beyond grants, beyond IRAP grants? Which grants would you be referring to?
4:45 p.m.
Liberal
Frank Baylis Liberal Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC
It says grants and contributions are $319 million; operating expenses are $400 million.
4:45 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Science and Innovation, Department of Industry
We had to distinguish between different kinds of grants and contribution programming. The IRAP grants are a certain kind, dealing directly with individual SMEs. There are economies of scale with that.
4:45 p.m.
Liberal
Frank Baylis Liberal Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC
I know what IRAP grants are. I wasn't asking about the differences between the IRAP grants and the full granting that NRC's doing. I'm asking why their operating expenses are $400 million and they're delivering $319 million of grants, whereas NSERC has operating expenses of $43 million and is delivering over $1 billion of grants.
4:45 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Science and Innovation, Department of Industry
The thing to recall is that the two organizations are dealing with very different kind of programming in grants and contribution programming.
For an organization like NSERC, much of their funding is going to individual doctoral fellowships, graduate fellowships, etc. NSERC and SSHRC are actually able to realize significant savings from the fact that they get a lot of the administration and the conduct of their contributions for free, because of the willingness of individual university faculties across the country to devote their time, gratis, toward the actual overall peer review process for academic research. It's necessary in a peer-reviewed system to have that. So that is part of it.
