Debates of Sept. 18th, 2023

Question No.1612—

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, VIA Rail Canada's operating revenue and costs for each service route are reported in the annual reports available at https://media.viarail.ca/en/reports#annual-reports. For fiscal year 2018, this is available in Annual Report 2018 on page 9; for fiscal year 2019, in Annual Report 2019 on page 9; for fiscal year 2020, in Annual Report 2020, section 4, on pages 3-4; for fiscal year 2021, in Annual Report 2021 on page 14; and for fiscal year 2022, in Annual Report 2022 on page 18.

Question No.1614—

[Laurel Collins, NDP, Victoria, BC]

With regard to the government’s Carbon Management Strategy: what are the details of all consultative bodies formed by the government, including the (i) name of the consultative body, (ii) names of individuals or organizations included, (iii) government officials and ministers involved, (iv) dates of each meeting held, (v) reports or recommendations put forward by the consultative body?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, reducing emissions remains the top priority of Canada’s climate plan, recognizing that the best way to tackle climate change is to stop new emissions from entering the atmosphere. Carbon management technologies will be a critical tool for heavy industry sectors to reduce their emissions and permanently remove existing historical emissions from the atmosphere. Carbon management is one of many innovative technology areas helping to advance climate action in support of Canada’s net-zero targets.

The name of the consultative body formed in spring 2021 by the government to provide strategic advice and input to the Carbon Management Strategy, previously called the Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage, or CCUS, Strategy, was the CCUS Thought Leaders’ Senior Reference Group.

The group was comprised of thought leaders external to the federal and provincial governments selected because of their knowledge of carbon management technologies and their use or development in the Canadian context or their ongoing leadership in fields relevant to carbon management technology development and deployment. These leaders were expected to bring the sum of their relevant experience to the group, rather than representing one single organization. The senior reference group’s various perspectives were captured at these three meetings but were not compiled into formal reports nor were there formal consensus recommendations.

The individuals included in the CCUS Thought Leaders’ senior reference group were Ed Whittingham, Clean Energy Consultant and former Executive Director, Pembina Institute, and a fellow at the Public Policy Forum; Marcius Extavour, Executive Director of the NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE; Maria Nsouli, Vice President, Impact Investment Fund at BMO; Sandra Odendahl, Vice President, Social Impact & Sustainability at Scotiabank; Robert Niven, Chief Executive Officer of CarbonCure; Anna Stukas, Vice President, Business Development at Carbon Engineering; Claude Letourneau, Chief Executive Officer of Svante; Adam Auer, Vice President, Environment and Sustainability at the Cement Association of Canada; Tim Wiwchar, General Manager of Carbon Capture and Storage in Canada at Shell Canada; Beth Hardy Valiaho, Vice President, Strategy & Stakeholder Relations at the International CCS Knowledge Centre; Richard Chalaturnyk of the University of Alberta; Jeff Pearson, President of Wolf Carbon; and Chris Grant, Vice President, Regional Development at Suncor.

The senior reference group was convened by Drew Leyburne, Assistant Deputy Minister of Energy Efficiency and Technology Sector at Natural Resources Canada to meet on three occasions in 2021: on April 14, June 3, and July 13, 2021.

Question No.1617—

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

With regard to the government’s thought-leaders senior reference group referred to in a February 2022 briefing note prepared for Natural Resources Canada deputy minister John Hannaford: (a) what were the criteria for selecting members of this group; (b) what is the membership of this group, including the names of individuals and organizations represented; (c) what are the details of all former members of this group, including the names of individuals and organizations represented; (d) what are the details of all meetings held by this group, including (i) the date of the meetings, (ii) the minister and government officials in attendance, (iii) whether minutes of the meetings were recorded; (e) what recommendations did the group make regarding the government’s Carbon Management Strategy; and (f) what are the details of all reports, including draft reports, prepared by this group, including the (i) date they were prepared, (ii) recommendations included, and (iii) recipients of the reports?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, reducing emissions remains the top priority of Canada’s climate plan, recognizing that the best way to tackle climate change is to stop new emissions from entering the atmosphere. Carbon management technologies will be a critical tool for heavy industry sectors to reduce their emissions and permanently remove existing historical emissions from the atmosphere. Carbon management is one of many innovative technology areas helping to advance climate action in support of Canada’s net-zero targets.

The name of the consultative body formed in spring 2021 by the government to provide strategic advice and input to the Carbon Management Strategy, previously called the Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage, or CCUS, Strategy, was the CCUS Thought Leaders’ Senior Reference Group.

The group was comprised of thought leaders external to the federal and provincial governments selected because of their knowledge of carbon management technologies and their use or development in the Canadian context or their ongoing leadership in fields relevant to carbon management technology development and deployment. These leaders were expected to bring the sum of their relevant experience to the group, rather than representing one single organization. The senior reference group’s various perspectives were captured at these three meetings but were not compiled into formal reports nor were there formal consensus recommendations.

The individuals included in the CCUS Thought Leaders’ senior reference group were Ed Whittingham, Clean Energy Consultant and former Executive Director, Pembina Institute, and a fellow at the Public Policy Forum; Marcius Extavour, Executive Director of the NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE; Maria Nsouli, Vice President, Impact Investment Fund at BMO; Sandra Odendahl, Vice President, Social Impact & Sustainability at Scotiabank; Robert Niven, Chief Executive Officer of CarbonCure; Anna Stukas, Vice President, Business Development at Carbon Engineering; Claude Letourneau, Chief Executive Officer of Svante; Adam Auer, Vice President, Environment and Sustainability at the Cement Association of Canada; Tim Wiwchar, General Manager of Carbon Capture and Storage in Canada at Shell Canada; Beth Hardy Valiaho, Vice President, Strategy & Stakeholder Relations at the International CCS Knowledge Centre; Richard Chalaturnyk of the University of Alberta; Jeff Pearson, President of Wolf Carbon; and Chris Grant, Vice President, Regional Development at Suncor.

The senior reference group was convened by Drew Leyburne, Assistant Deputy Minister of Energy Efficiency and Technology Sector at Natural Resources Canada to meet on three occasions in 2021: on April 14, June 3, and July 13, 2021.

Question No.1618—

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

With regard to the handling of cases and claims pursuant to the Indian Residential School Settlement Agreement by the Department of Justice Canada, Indigenous Services Canada and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada: how much has been spent on settled cases, request for direction, and other proceedings where Canada has been either the plaintiff or defendant before the appellate courts (such as the Ontario Superior Court or the Supreme Court of British Columbia), related to survivors of St. Anne’s Residential School between 2013, and June 1, 2023 (i) in total, (ii) broken down by year?

[Arif Virani, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, with respect to the expenditures incurred between 2013 and June 1, 2023, in legal proceedings pursuant to the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement related to survivors of St. Anne's Residential School, to the extent that the information that has been requested is or may be protected by any legal privileges, including solicitor-client privilege or settlement privilege, the federal Crown asserts those privileges. In this case, it has only waived solicitor-client privilege, and only to the extent of revealing the total legal costs, as defined below.

The total actual and notional legal costs associated with legal proceedings pursuant to the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement related to survivors of St. Anne's Residential School, for the period of January 1, 2013, to May 9, 2018, was provided in response to an earlier question and amount to approximatively $2,314,000. The total legal costs for the subsequent period, from May 10, 2018, to June 1, 2023, amount to approximatively $1,939,200‬. These costs cover all types of court proceedings, including actions, requests for direction, motions, costs proceedings and appeals. In most of these files, the Crown did not initiate the proceedings but rather acted as a defendant or respondent. The total legal costs are with respect to litigation and litigation support services, which were provided, in these cases, by the Department of Justice. Department of Justice lawyers, notaries and paralegals are salaried public servants and therefore no legal fees are incurred for their services. A “notional amount” can, however, be provided to account for the legal services they provide. The notional amount is calculated by multiplying the total hours recorded in the responsive files for the relevant period by the applicable approved internal legal services hourly rates. Actual costs are composed of file related legal disbursements paid by the Department and then cost-recovered from the client-departments or agencies, as well as the costs of legal agents who may be retained by the Minister of Justice to provide litigation services in certain cases.

The total amount mentioned in this response is based on information contained in Department of Justice systems, as of July 5, 2023.

Question No.1619—

[Tony Baldinelli, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

With regard to memorandums and briefing notes sent to the Minister of Public Safety or the minister’s office concerning prisoner transfers since January 1, 2019, about prisoner transfers or potential prisoner transfers: what are the details of all such documents, including, for each, the (i) date, (ii) sender, (iii) recipient, (iv) title, (v) type of document, (vi) subject matter, (vii) summary of contents, (viii) file number?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, since January 1, 2019, the Minister of Public Safety or the Minister’s office has not received any memorandums or briefing notes from Public Safety branches concerning prisoner transfers.

The Correctional Service of Canada has a process in place to provide advanced notification to the Minister’s office about transfers involving high profile offenders. While this can include verbal briefings, often notifications are sent via email. Dating back to January 1, 2019, 39 transfer notifications have been issued to the office of the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness and the office of the Minister of Public Safety.

Typically, the titles of these email briefings and the contents of the email contain identifiable information, such as the name of an offender or the name of the receiving institution, and is therefore protected information under the Privacy Act.

Question No.1623—

[Matthew Green, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

With regard to the $3.7 million in budget 2022 allocated for the implementation of a Mental Health Fund for Black federal public servants: (a) how much of the funding allocated for fiscal year 2022-23 remains unspent; (b) how many full-time equivalent employees are working on the implementation of the fund; (c) what tools and programs have been created since the implementation began; (d) how many employees have accessed support through the fund; and (e) what are the details of all reports or briefings regarding the status of ongoing initiatives through this funding, including the (i) title of the report, (ii) author, (iii) target audience, (iv) recommendations or conclusions arrived at?

[Anita Anand, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada is working to create a diverse and inclusive public service, free from racism, harassment and discrimination, where everyone has a sense of belonging. Budget 2022 proposed $3.7 million over four years, and Budget 2023 proposed to provide a further $45.9 million over three years, starting in 2023-24, to the Treasury Board Secretariat to create a Mental Health Fund for Black public servants and establish dedicated career development programs, including to prepare Black public service leaders for executive positions.

With regard to (a), Budget 2022 committed $3.7 million over four years for a Black-led engagement, design, and implementation of a Mental Health Fund for Black federal public servants. In 2022-23, the Treasury Board Secretariat accessed $1.1 million of the $3.7 million and will access the remaining $2.6 million starting in 2023-24. Of the $1.1 million that was accessed, $787,207 was spent.

With regard to (b), during the first phase of work, the Treasury Board Secretariat focused on developing an action plan for Black employees in the public service, working with Black employee networks. The Treasury Board Secretariat hired several Black employees on temporary assignments from several departments on secondment to develop and design proposals for a mental health fund for Black employees and dedicated career development programs. This included hiring 5.5 full-time equivalents using the $1.1 million from Budget 2022. That work resulted in new Budget 2023 commitments. A total of 5.5 full-time equivalents, or 11 employees, were hired in 2022 to accomplish this work. When the work was done, the secondments were ended, and the employees returned to their organizations.

With regard to (c), the second phase of work is underway to meet the Budget commitments and it will build on the foundational work started in phase one, including taking stock of existing programs, consultations with employee and subject matter experts. A dedicated team will be established to design, develop and implement programs that support the mental health and career development of Black public servants. The Treasury Board Secretariat plans to re-engage with Black employee networks and more broadly, consult Black employees in the public service to ensure that the initiatives developed will respond to their needs. The Treasury Board Secretariat is also working with partners, such as Health Canada, which delivers the Employee Assistance Program, and the Canada School of Public Service, which offers a suite of leadership development programming for leaders at all levels. We will build upon what exists and develop new programming to meet the needs of Black employees. Experts from the Black community will be engaged throughout this process.

With regard to (d), Budget 2022 committed $3.7 million over four years to support the Black-led engagement, design, and implementation phase of the Mental Health Fund. The funding was not intended to provide direct support to public servants. The work completed in 2022-2023 led to the Budget 2023 commitment of $45.9 million over three years, starting in 2023-24. This funding will provide direct support to employees for mental health and career development.

With regard to (e), following Parliament’s approval of Budget 2023, the Treasury Board Secretariat began the work to deliver on the Budget 2023 commitment. More information on the Mental Health Fund initiatives will be made available once they are designed and launched.

Question No.1624—

[Matthew Green, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

With regard to the handling of cases and claims pursuant to the Black Class Action Lawsuit launched in December 2020: how much has been spent by the Department of Justice and the Attorney General in legal fees and court fees in their requests to dismiss the lawsuit?

[Arif Virani, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, the Department of Justice undertook a preliminary search to determine what information would fall within the scope of the question and the time that would be required to prepare a comprehensive response. Producing and validating a response to this question would require a manual collection and careful analysis of individual transactions that is not possible in the time allotted, and which cannot be completed with the precision and detail necessary to ensure a complete and accurate response.

Although it is not possible to provide a response to the specific question posed, the Department of Justice can provide a summary of the total legal costs to respond to this class action, which includes but is not limited to legal services to support the preservation of records covering 99 departments and agencies, the motion for certification, the motion to strike, examinations, as well as various other steps required of Canada in the context of the litigation. To the extent that the information is, or may be, protected by any legal privileges, including solicitor-client privilege, the federal Crown asserts those privileges. In this case, it has only waived solicitor-client privilege, and only to the extent of revealing the total legal costs, as defined below.

The total actual and notional legal costs associated with the Black Class Action, the Thompson lawsuit, amount to approximately $7.85 million. This amount covers the costs associated with all aspects of the litigation. The services targeted here are litigation services as well as litigation support services. Department of Justice lawyers, notaries and paralegals are salaried public servants and therefore no legal fees are incurred for their services. A “notional amount” can, however, be provided to account for the legal services they provide. The notional amount is calculated by multiplying the total hours recorded in the responsive files for the relevant period by the applicable approved internal legal services hourly rates. Actual costs represent file related legal disbursements and legal agent fees, as the case may be. The total amount mentioned in this response is based on information contained in Department of Justice systems, as of July 5, 2023.

Question No.1625—

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

With regard to statistics recorded by Health Canada pertaining to its Medical Assistance in Dying Program (MAID), for the year 2022: (a) how many Canadians have made a request for MAID, broken down by those for whom natural death is reasonably foreseeable and those for whom natural death is not reasonably foreseeable; (b) what is the breakdown of (a) by province or territory; (c) what is the breakdown by age of those who have requested MAID; (d) of the requests in (a), how many were (i) granted, (ii) denied; and (e) what is the breakdown by age of those whose request for MAID were (i) granted, (ii) denied?

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, data for the year 2022 will become available in fall 2023 and can be provided upon request at that time. In the meantime, we are pleased to present data for 2021 below. More information can be found in the “Third Annual Report on Medical Assistance in Dying”.

In response to (a), there were 12,286 written requests for medical assistance in dying, or MAID, in 2021. Of the total number of MAID provisions, or 10,064 individuals, 2.2%, or 219 individuals, were individuals whose natural deaths were not reasonably foreseeable, or non-RFND, with the remainder of provisions, or 9,845 individuals, or 97.8%, being individuals whose deaths were reasonably foreseeable. Data does not support the calculation of the number of requests not ending in a MAID provision by RFND vs non-RFND status.

In response to (b), the breakdown of MAID requests and outcomes by jurisdiction is provided in Table 7.1 from the “Third Annual Report on Medical Assistance in Dying”. Due to small numbers, some data have been suppressed to protect confidentiality. The majority of written requests, or 9,950 requests, or 81%, resulted in the administration of MAID based on reports received. The remaining 2,336 requests, or 19%, resulted in an outcome other than MAID: 231 individuals withdrew their request, or 1.9% of written requests; 487 individuals were deemed ineligible, or 4% of written requests; and 1,618 individuals died prior to receiving MAID, or 13.2% of written requests. These details are found in Annex A of the report.

In response to (c), the average age at the time MAID was provided in 2021 was 76.3. The breakdown by age of individuals who received MAID is as follows: 139 individuals aged 18 to 45, 353 aged 46 to 55, 1,165 aged 56 to 64, 1,462 aged 65 to 70, 1,572 aged 71 to 75, 1,621 aged 76 to 80, 1,364 aged 81 to 85, 1,200 aged 86 to 90, and 1,074 aged 91 or older.

The average age for outcomes not ending in MAID is 76.5 for ineligible cases, 75.4 for cases that were withdrawn, and 73.7 for patients who died. The data does not support the calculation of the age range of individuals who did not receive MAID.

In response to (d), and as per the response in answer (b) above and in Table 7.1 from the “Third Annual Report on Medical Assistance in Dying”, of the 12,286 written requests for MAID in 2021, 9,950, or 81%, resulted in the administration of MAID based on reports received, and 487 individuals were deemed ineligible, or 4% of written requests. In addition to these 487 individuals, of the 2,336 requests, or 19%, that resulted in an outcome other than MAID, 231 individuals withdrew their request, or 1.9% of written requests, and 1,618 individuals died prior to receiving MAID, or 13.2% of written requests.

In response to (e), the breakdown by age of individuals who received MAID is provided in part (c). The data does not support the calculation of the age range of individuals who did not receive MAID.

Question No.1630—

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

With regard to funding from FinDev Canada for CASEIF IV, a regional private equity fund managed by LaFise Group in Central America and the Caribbean: (a) how does FinDev track the specific companies and projects that CASEIF IV and similar financial intermediaries fund with FinDev’s contribution; (b) how do CASEIF IV and similar financial intermediaries report to FinDev about the results of the end-use of their funds; (c) what projects and companies does FinDev fund through CASEIF IV; (d) how does FinDev vote, recommend, or advise the administrators of the CASEIF IV about how FinDev wants its contributions used; (e) how does FinDev follow up to ensure that its requests are respected; and (f) to what extent have they been respected to date?

[Mary Ng, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to (a), funds like CASEIF IV submit drawdown requests to all the Limited Partners specifying the application of funds including details on the portfolio companies that will be supported with the funding request. Application of funds are allocated based on the drawdown request. CASEIF IV and other similar financial intermediaries provide quarterly and annual reporting that includes portfolio updates, Financial Statements and a Capital Account Statement with the value attributable to each Limited Partner.

With regard to (b), CASEIF IV and other similar financial intermediaries provide quarterly and annual reporting that includes portfolio updates, Financial Statements and a Capital Account Statement with the value attributable to each Limited Partner.

With regard to (c), CASEIF IV is a generalist growth equity fund for small and medium sized enterprises in Central America, Panama, Dominican Republic and Colombia. CASEIF IV supports companies within key target sectors, namely the agribusiness value chain, renewable energy (up to 25MW generation), food and beverages processing, manufacturing, education and IT, that promote development and fight poverty by enhancing sustainable growth in alignment with FinDev Canada’s development impact goals. As of today, the CASEIF IV investment portfolio consists of two entities, a loan to a retail company and an equity investment in a food and beverage processing company.

With regard to (d), in accordance with FinDev Canada’s Development Impact Framework, eligible transactions are assessed for their current and potential development impact on women’s economic empowerment, climate action and local market development. Contributions from FinDev Canada and other Limited Partners towards investments administered by CASEIF IV are governed by a Limited Partners Agreement (LPA) that includes an Investment Policy with each of the Limited Partners participating pro rata in each of the underlying investments unless a predefined opt out criteria is communicated upfront.

Compliance with the LPA and other Fund Documents are monitored via the quarterly and annual reporting and compliance undertakings provided with each drawdown request. The Limited Partners Advisory Committee meets at least annually or more frequent when required for decisions that required Advisory Committee approval. Deviations from the Investment Policy requires Advisory Committee approval. As a limited liability partner, FinDev Canada does not participate in the management of the Fund.

With regard to (e), FinDev follows up to ensure that its requests are respected through review of quarterly and annual reporting, quarterly valuation review, monitoring reports, request for additional information if required.

With regard to (f), CASEIF IV is in good standing with all requirements having been respected to date.

Question No.1634—

[Brad Redekopp, Conservative, Saskatoon West, SK]

With regard to Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and international students, broken down by year the international student arrived in Canada, for each of the last five years: (a) how many times was IRCC notified that the student was changing the designated learning institution; and (b) of the changes in (a), in how many instances did IRCC receive notice within (i) one week, (ii) 30 days, (iii) 90 days, (iv) six months, (v) one year, of the student arriving in Canada?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, when students change institutions, they are to report it through their MyAccount profile. This data, however, is embedded within the student’s Global Case Management System case file in such a way that it is not possible to extract for reporting purposes within the timeframe of a written question.

Question No.1638—

[Todd Doherty, Conservative, Cariboo—Prince George, BC]

With regard to government advertising being flagged for being partisan, since January 1, 2016: (a) what are the details of all ads which were flagged, including, for each, the (i) date, (ii) type of advertisement, (iii) subject matter, (iv) description of the content, (v) government response to the flag, including whether the advertisement was edited or removed?

[Anita Anand, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, in 2016, the Government of Canada established a mandatory non-partisan external review process as part of a commitment to strengthen the oversight of government advertising. Ad Standards, the independent, not-for-profit, self-regulatory body that administers the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards was contracted to undertake this work.

At that time, advertising campaigns with budgets over $500,000 were subject to the process. In April 2020, the threshold for a mandatory review was reduced to $250,000. Departments may also submit campaigns that fall below the threshold for review.

All information on the advertising oversight mechanism, including the criteria used to evaluate advertising creatives and the two-stage review process, is publicly available on the Advertising oversight mechanism page: https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/government-communications/advertising-oversight-mechanism.html.

All results of the reviews by Ad Standards are posted on the Review results and decisions page: https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/government-communications/advertising-oversight-mechanism/review-results-decisions.html

The results are broken down by fiscal year, department, campaign name and details on modifications made following an initial review. As outlined on the Review results and decisions page, all flagged issues must be addressed, and the modified ad creatives must pass a final review from Ad Standards before being published or aired.

In addition to the non-partisan external review process, a complaints mechanism was established in 2020 to allow the public to flag any Government of Canada advertising that they perceive to be partisan. TBS is responsible for reviewing and reporting details of the complaints publicly on Canada.ca here: https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/government-communications/advertising-oversight-mechanism/submitting-complaint-about-partisanship-in-gc-advertising.html

To date, TBS has reviewed a total of five complaints. The advertisements in question were deemed to meet the review criteria and no action was required.

Question No.1640—

[Tracy Gray, Conservative, Kelowna—Lake Country, BC]

With regard to the government's commitments on the completion of the Okanagan Rail Trail project and the federal Addition to Reserve (ATR) process for the Duck Lake Indian Reserve No. 7 (IR#7): (a) what is the status of the ATR to Duck Lake IR#7 of former CN Rail land; (b) what are the exact areas of negotiation which have (i) been resolved, (ii) not yet been resolved, to complete the ATR; (c) how many meetings or briefings have the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations or the Minister of Indigenous Services had regarding the Okanagan Rail Trail project or the ATR to Duck Lake IR#7 since November 26, 2022, and what are the details of each meeting or briefing, including the dates and names or titles of participants; (d) when was the last communication sent by the government to the Duck Lake IR#7 or the Okanagan Indian Band regarding the ATR and what is the summary of contents or other details about the last communication; and (e) what is the estimated timeline for the completion of the ATR?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Indigenous Services and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, insofar as Indigenous Services Canada, or ISC, is concerned, the response to part (a) is that ISC continues to support the Okanagan Indian Band with the Addition to Reserve of the former Canadian National Rail corridor lands bisecting Duck Lake Indian Reserve No. 7. Canadian National Rail is currently the registered owner of the lands in fee simple and Canada has previously provided Canadian National Rail with a draft Agreement of Purchase and Sale to support the transfer of lands to Canada for the use and benefit of the Band. Negotiations around the Purchase and Sale Agreement are ongoing between Canadian National Rail, Okanagan Indian Band and Canada.

With regard to (i) of part (b), since the parties are in confidential negotiations on terms of land instruments such as permits under the Indian Act, it is not appropriate for the department to comment.

With regard to (ii) of part (b), Okanagan Indian Band continues to work to resolve third-party interests including property rights required by telecommunications providers, electrical transmission and distribution services, sewer utility interests, and access agreements for on-reserve developments. Okanagan Indian Band has taken the lead on these negotiations and has the support of legal and technical experts working to satisfy Additions to Reserve requirements. Canada has offered to support the Band with their negotiations and has assisted with providing template documents.

With regard to (c), there have been no meetings or briefings on this project with the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations or the Minister of ISC since November 26, 2022. At their request, Okanagan Indian Band has been leading these discussions with support from ISC Meetings occur approximately every six weeks, the last meeting occurring on May 16, 2023, with regular communication occurring between ISC and Okanagan Indian Band between meetings. Okanagan Indian Band is aware that ISC officials are available to meet at any time to progress this addition to reserve.

With regard to (d), the last communication between ISC and Okanagan Indian Band regarding the Addition to Reserve was sent on June 15, 2023. The email communication was regarding natural gas and electrical distribution permits. The permits are currently being drafted by respective legal counsels of the third-party interest holders, Canada, and Okanagan Indian Band as a requirement of the Additions to Reserve process.

With regard to (e), it is difficult to estimate timelines for completion as completion of the Addition to Reserve is subject to the readiness and willingness of third-party interest holders to terminate or negotiate and execute federal replacement interests with Okanagan Indian Band. This is an ISC priority file and the department continues to work in collaboration with Okanagan Indian Band to complete the Additions to Reserve. The estimated timeline for this submission is within the second quarter of 2023-2024, however, this timeline is dependent on the timely and successful execution of the utility agreements. Once this former railway line can be formally confirmed as added to Duck Lake Indian Reserve No. 7, it will be Okanagan Indian Band’s discretion on how the land will be used.

Question No.1646—

[Ryan Williams, Conservative, Bay of Quinte, ON]

With regard to Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada’s 2022 Business Accelerators and Incubators Performance Measurement Framework Survey: (a) how many accelerators and incubators (i) were invited to respond, (ii) responded; (b) for each respondent in (a), what were their responses to questions in Part A of the survey, broken down by question; (c) how many companies (i) were invited to respond, (ii) responded; and (d) for each respondent in (c), what were their responses to questions in Part B of the survey, broken down by question?

[Rechie Valdez, Liberal, Minister of Small Business]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to (i) of part (a), business accelerators and incubators, or BAIs, are organizations that provide business support and advisory services to start-ups. The Business Accelerator and Incubator Performance Measurement Framework, or BAI PMF, was co-created by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, or ISED, and the BAI community and, since 2020, it is delivered in partnership with the Canada Accelerator Incubator Network, or CAIN, and the Mouvement des accélérateurs d'innovation du Québec, or MAIN. The survey is composed of a part A and a part B. Part A of the survey is intended to be filled out by the BAI, while part B of the survey is meant for the companies supported by that BAI. A single BAI could support anywhere from just a handful to thousands of companies per year. For each BAI participant, there will be more than one company supported. Part A of the survey represents the BAI, while Part B represents the companies supported by the BAI. CAIN and MAIN promote this project and invite the participation from their networks and the wider BAI community to participate to the survey. CAIN’s community includes more that 125 BAIs and MAIN’s network consists of 167 organizations ranging from BAIs, universities and researchers, municipalities, and investors. The exact number of BAIs invited to respond to the 2022 survey is unknown.

With regard to (ii) of part (a), 20 BAIs responded to the survey in 2018, increasing to 31 in 2019, 28 in 2020, and 33 in 2021. The BAI PMF collects survey data for the previous calendar year, that is to say data collected in 2018 was for companies receiving BAI programming in 2017. The 2022 survey data has been submitted to Statistics Canada for analysis.

With regard to (b), ISED does not have the 2022 list of BAI participants yet. As per project parameters, identifiable micro-data, i.e. the response provided by each BAI and company to each question, will be available only to Statistics Canada researchers and will be governed by strict confidentiality measures. As a general rule, public reports assessing the economic impact of BAIs in Canada will only include aggregated descriptive statistics, and only in cases in which there are sufficient observations to maintain firm level confidentiality. ISED does not have permission to share survey data publicly. Further details are available online at https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/sme-research-statistics/en/business-accelerators-and-incubators/bai-performance-measurement-framework/2019-bai-performance-measurement-framework-20#Toc4579868.

With regard to (i) of part (c), ISED does not have that information. Each BAI participant is responsible for selecting which companies to survey and for implementing the survey.

With regard to (ii) of part (c), the number of companies per year reflected in the analysis are: 539 companies in 2018, 2,461 in 2019, 2,116 for 2020, and 1,877 in 2021. The 2022 survey data has been submitted to Statistics Canada for analysis.

With regard to (d), ISED does not have that information. As per project parameters, identifiable micro-data will be available only to Statistics Canada researchers and will be governed by strict confidentiality measures. As a general rule, public reports assessing the economic impact of BAIs in Canada will only include aggregated descriptive statistics, and only in cases in which there are sufficient observations to maintain firm level confidentiality. ISED does not have permission to share survey data publicly. Further details are available online at https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/sme-research-statistics/en/business-accelerators-and-incubators/bai-performance-measurement-framework/2019-bai-performance-measurement-framework-20#Toc4579868.