Who is responsible, then?
Evidence of meeting #130 for Public Accounts in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was change.
A video is available from Parliament.
Evidence of meeting #130 for Public Accounts in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was change.
A video is available from Parliament.
5:30 p.m.
Conservative
5:30 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of the Environment
The deputy minister of ISED is the one who should answer your questions about the agreements they have with this business and why they—
June 11th, 2024 / 5:30 p.m.
Conservative
5:30 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of the Environment
It's not convenient. It's actually—
5:30 p.m.
Conservative
5:30 p.m.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa, MB
I will ask another one, and I'm sure you will have the same excuse.
The government gave away $61 million to Pratt & Whitney through their net-zero accelerator fund. Pratt & Whitney is owned by RTX, an American company worth over $190 billion.
How many emissions are supposed to be reduced directly by this $61-million handout?
5:30 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of the Environment
The answer is the same.
5:30 p.m.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa, MB
You have no idea. What's most frustrating is you're so flippant about it. You don't even care.
5:30 p.m.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa, MB
Prove it.
What is the goal? How many emissions? Were there even any targets?
5:30 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of the Environment
I also care about accountability. I will not accept other—
5:30 p.m.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa, MB
Do you? You would think the big cheese at Environment and Climate Change should absolutely know how many emissions are being reduced, especially by an $8-billion program. Do you think you should be a little bit concerned about that?
5:30 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of the Environment
It is not for me to comment on this, and you know that. You have to talk with the departments that are managing the programs. They are the ones that are responsible and accountable for this program, and that's the way it always has been.
5:30 p.m.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa, MB
Okay.
You gave the Parliamentary Budget Officer a copy of the government's impact report on the carbon tax. However, in your letter on behalf of Minister Guilbeault, you stated, “I request you to ensure that this information is used for your office's internal purposes only and is not published or further distributed.”
Why is Minister Guilbeault keeping this carbon tax report secret from Canadians?
5:30 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of the Environment
We didn't give him a carbon tax report. What we gave to the PBO was basic data. It's Excel spreadsheets of information, and some of this information has not been published, and that's why. Sometimes it could be protected by certain acts like the Statistics Act.
As we always do with the PBO, we wanted to make sure he had all the information so he could develop and provide his own analysis. We gave him the information, and we put in this request that he not distribute the information but use it for his analysis and make sure it's useful for him without necessarily releasing it.
5:30 p.m.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa, MB
Could you table that report with the committee?
5:30 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of the Environment
It's not a report. It's a decision the government will have to make. We can do the due diligence and a decision can be made.
5:30 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of the Environment
I'm not in a position to table it at this stage.
5:30 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of the Environment
It's a decision the government will have to make.
5:30 p.m.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa, MB
What government? Is it the Privy Council Office? It is Mr. Conrad? Would he be in charge of that?
5:30 p.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of the Environment
The government must make this decision. This would probably involve discussions with central agencies. As public servants, we must ensure that the necessary verifications have been carried out and that due diligence has been exercised with regard to the information intended for release. This involves checking whether the information is confidential. The decision on whether to publish the raw data—this isn't a report—ultimately rests with the government.
