House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2000, with 56% of the vote.
Business Development Bank of Canada October 9th, 2003
Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General does not need orders from the Government of Canada to do her work. As for the corporation, it is a crown corporation, independent of the government. Its president has appeared several times before the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology, of which my hon. colleague is a member. If he has questions, he can ask them of the president.
Government Contracts October 9th, 2003
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is working himself into an agitated state when he should focus instead on the real purpose of all this, which is to make sure we get statistics numbers and a census that we can rely upon. Statistics Canada will continue to do what is necessary to achieve just that.
Government Contracts October 9th, 2003
Mr. Speaker, one thing I can assure the House is that Statistics Canada will continue to do its job according to the worldclass standards that it has always achieved. We will make certain of that. It has a well deserved reputation for excellence and it will continue to work to deserve that reputation.
Business Development Bank of Canada October 8th, 2003
Yes, Mr. Speaker, this is clearly an independent agency of the government, a Crown corporation. It has its own powers, and managers report to the board of directors. The member will have to ask the president and the board of directors for details.
Business Development Bank of Canada October 8th, 2003
Mr. Speaker, the BDC is a Crown corporation operating at arm's length from the government. It is operating in a business environment, and managers report to the board of directors. I expect that BDC officials will report to the board on the issue raised by the hon. member.
Technology Partnerships Canada October 8th, 2003
Mr. Speaker, the member has sunk to a new low, a low which day by day does discredit to himself and his party.
This investment was made after due diligence by officials acting in good faith by investing in Canadian research and development to advance innovation, create and maintain jobs, and attract investment in the country.
We believe in investing in the future of our economy and not playing these little political games.
Technology Partnerships Canada October 8th, 2003
Mr. Speaker, it is well known that the entire business enterprise of the former finance minister was in a blind trust.
It was operated entirely at arm's length from the minister during the time he was in cabinet. He respected all of the ethical guidelines and more. That is typical of his conduct throughout the past 10 years.
Technology Partnerships Canada October 8th, 2003
Mr. Speaker, the member should know that these investments are often made in pre-competitive research and development for emerging sectors of the economy. It takes a while to get these products to market and for the companies to be in a position to repay.
Let me quote from Mr. Bennett's book, which he published a couple of years ago on this subject, called A Call to Account . He said:
My belief is that the deals are now structured in such a way under the new TPC program...the repayment terms are clear.
TPC is now working very well.
Technology Partnerships Canada October 8th, 2003
Mr. Speaker, I can tell the member that last fiscal year total receipts from companies in which investments had been made through TPC were almost $19 million. That is double the amount from the last fiscal year and repayments continue to accelerate. We negotiate terms which involve repayment of TPC investments.
TPC is one of the ways in which we invest in innovation. That is obviously something with which the hon. member does not agree. We believe in innovation on this side of this House.
Hiv-Aids October 2nd, 2003
Mr. Speaker, we intend to fully respect the Patent Act. I have here a press release sent yesterday by an association of patent drug companies expressing its enthusiasm for this initiative.