Mr. Speaker, my question is directed to the Minister of Transport.
As the Auditor General continues to reveal cases of wasteful spending in the federal government, we learn that the president of CN, Mr. Paul Tellier, who receives an annual salary of $345,000, in addition to an annual allowance of about $52,000, received from his employer an interest-free loan of $432,000 to buy a house for which he paid $345,000, when he was transferred from Ottawa to Montreal.
Does the minister feel that at a time of budgetary restraint, it was appropriate for CN to grant Mr. Tellier an interest-free loan of $432,000 without a mortgage guarantee, in order to camouflage this transaction?