Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Welcome, Mrs. Fraser. It is always a pleasure for me to say that the your family is from Dundee, in my riding. I mention it at every opportunity because it is a great source of pride for us.
Mrs. Fraser, I would like to ask a question flowing from the testimony of MDS Nordion. When a Crown corporation signs a contract with a private company and that funds are committed, what are the powers of the government? In this case, we are dealing with a failure that is extremely costly for the taxpayers and for a private company since it amounts to more than half a billion dollars. When can government decide that enough is enough? The Crown corporation invests money and the government provides financial help but we are dealing with an arm's-length Crown corporation as well as with a private company, MDS Nordion, which have concluded a contract. At the end of the day, it is taxpayers who will have to pay for this failure and for this bad business partnership.
When can the government be involved, and should it be? What is its responsibility in this type of situation?