Mr. Speaker, with regard to (a)(i) and (a)(ii), the Canadian Tourism Commission, or CTC, provides annual estimates of its economic indicators, which can be found in its annual report. The Canadian Tourism Commission does not provide an estimate of the impact of its programming on GDP.
With regard to (b)(i), the Government of Canada supports a strong tourism industry through targeted programs and services. In 2009-2010, the federal government contributed over $827 million to various programs, projects, and activities that had a direct impact on tourism. In 2010-2011, the contribution reached over $939 million.
Overall, tourism in Canada generated $21.4 billion for governments in 2011, up 6.6% from 2010. Tourism exports generated by international travelers’ spending in Canada contributed $4.7 billion to government revenues in 2011, representing 21.8% of total government revenues attributable to tourism. The source for this information is the document entitled Government Revenues Attributable to Tourism, or GRAT, from Statistics Canada.
With regard to (b)(ii), the tourism sector plays a vital role in our economy and is an important economic driver and community builder in all regions of Canada. In 2012, tourism activities directly accounted for $32.4 billion of Canada's GDP, an increase of 3.8% over 2011 in current dollars. Tourism represents about 2% of Canada’s GDP.