Jim Eglinski

[Business of Supply, April 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, it is very important. Just last week I received a call from one of our constituents who said “I do not understand the family tax credit. What is in there for me? What is in there for my kids who are in sports?” I sat down and I explained to him where he could get those credits.

Many Canadians are not getting the opportunity to see that message. It is up to us as a government to pass that message on to Canadians and families, so that they understand what tax benefits are there and can claim those tax benefits. We know that over 200,000 people are still unaware of them. We need to get that message out. The best way is by advertising.

[Business of Supply, April 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, it goes back to just last year when the hon. member for Pontiac showed great interest in how the government would advertise Bill C-21, the red tape reduction act. He said:

I'm wondering if there has been or if there will be outreach done that explains this to the mom-and-pop shop that's doing great work with 25 employees or fewer. How are we going to tell them how it affects them?

There is no difference in the question he has asked right now. We are passing information on to Canadians about important issues, and it is a message that has to be passed on.

[Business of Supply, April 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, yes, I believe our government is doing what is required. We need to advise people of the initiatives in our action plan, things like services to newcomers, protecting the health and safety of Canadians, which we have to let them know, priority occupations, women in the recruitment campaign. We have to get these things out to the public to allow people to understand what our action plan will do. This is no different than what the Liberal government did between 2002 and 2006 when it spent $250 million doing exactly the same thing this government is doing today.

[Business of Supply, April 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I would debate whether the event the hon. member was questioning was an ad or was it just a program that was revealing what was taking place at that point. I do not believe it was an ad that was sponsored the Canadian government.

[Business of Supply, April 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the Privy Council Office provides critical oversight throughout the entire process, and departments evaluate their campaigns and report on their results. Departments work closely with the Privy Council Office to develop the advertising proposals. The proposals provide a detailed overview of the advertising campaign, including its objectives, key messages and government priorities it supports.

Departments also consult each other to identify areas of common interest and opportunities to collaborate. This type of collaboration is an example of how the government treats taxpayer dollars with respect. It maximizes efficiency and prevents unnecessary duplication between departments.

Once campaign and funding approvals have been given, departments consult with Public Works and Government Services Canada regarding contractor options for advertising services. These options include a call-up against the standing offer, a competition among agencies pre-approved on a supply arrangement and request for approvals through buyandsell.gc.ca.

With a contract in place, departments work with their advertising agency to provide creative concepts and a media plan based on the objectives of the campaign. Here is an important note. Advertising campaigns must meet all related Government of Canada legislation, policies and standards, including those set out in the federal identity program policy, communications policy of the Government of Canada, contracting policy and the Official Languages Act, as well as related policies and directives.

Just to be clear, those are four policies that have to be followed in order for an advertising campaign to get the green light. What is more, all campaigns must also be guided by the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards. That is a substantial amount of oversight and accountability.

Departments then approve all production estimates and schedules, and are responsible for financial and administrative procedures, including documenting their campaigns in the advertising management information system. After this is done, departments provide final creative and media plans to the Public Works and Government Services Canada, which reviews for compliance with applicable legislation, policies, and standards.

That is not all. The government also conducts thorough assessments of all major advertising campaigns to ensure that they are functioning as intended. These results are posted online for all Canadians to see. Departments track campaign results using a variety of metrics. For advertising campaigns with a media component of over $1 million or more, departments must conduct a mandatory, standardized post-campaign evaluation. The evaluation tracks audience recall of the campaign and gauges the audience's understanding and response to the advertisement. This is responsible management of taxpayer dollars.

It should be clear that funding for government advertising is nothing if not accountable.

I stated earlier that the communications policy required the government to be responsive to the diverse information needs of Canadians. It is also designed to ensure that it complies with acts, policies and procedures, and provides value for money. In fact, there are three ways in which the government reports on advertising spending.

First, all funds set by the Treasury Board for government advertising are accounted for in a quarterly report produced by the Treasury Board Secretariat. These quarterly reports are posted online and are accessible to all Canadians.

Second, total annual spending on advertising is reported by Public Works and Government Services Canada through the Annual Report on Government of Canada Advertising Activities. It provides an overview of the government's advertising management practices and outlines the Government of Canada's advertising initiatives. It also lists all expenditures by federal institutions, as well as by media type.

In fact, there is a significant amount of proactive disclosure involved. All advertising-related contracts are posted on Contracts Canada, a website managed by Public Works and Government Services Canada. In addition, departments and agencies are required to post all contracts over $10,000 on their respective websites.

Third, parliamentarians and Canadians can find detailed information on government advertising spending in the Public Accounts that are tabled in Parliament every fall.

In addition to these reports, the government updated its procedures for management of advertising in August 2014. The updated procedures ensure that Government of Canada advertising is well coordinated, transparent and managed in a way that provides value for Canadians. This is transparency.

Complementing the communications policy of the Government of Canada is the federal identity program policy. These policies often operate in tandem so as to frame the voice and the face of government. The communications policy promotes coherent, consistent communications, one government speaking with one voice. The federal identity program policy supports the government's corporate identity to help shape the face of government.

The federal identity program policy is about clear and consistent identification. It projects the government as a coherent, unified administration and enables Canadians to recognize at a glance where their government is at work for them. The federal identity program policy governs the use of three identifiers of the government: the coat of arms of Canada; the signature, that is to say the flag with the title of the institution or the Government of Canada; and the “Canada” word mark.

My hon. colleagues will see the results of the federal identity program policy on every Government of Canada building, on every piece of official correspondence, on signs, vehicles and uniforms. These two policies govern how advertising is carried out by the Government of Canada.

To be clear, departments and agencies must ensure that the design and presentation of advertisements conform to the communications policy and its procedures, as well as to the requirements of the federal identity policy program. What is more, all advertising campaigns are reviewed by the Privy Council Office, and contracts must be issued through Public Works and the Government Services of Canada. Of course, departments and agencies may not be used for public funds to purchase advertising that supports political parties.

I cannot support the motion before us today. That is because our government has an obligation to communicate with Canadians about important government programs and services. Canadians need to know how government programs and services have a positive impact on their lives, their communities and their country.

I can think of a number of examples.

Let us take the home renovation tax credit as one. After announcing the economic action plan in 2009, our government launched an advertising campaign to make people aware of some of the initiatives in the plan that would create jobs and boost the economy. As a result, Canadians took advantage of programs like the home renovation tax credit to upgrade their homes. People were informed, and homeowners and the construction industry benefited. So did our economy, with the creation of jobs and growth that enabled Canada to perform better than most during those challenging times.

I think all of those present would agree that advertising plays a crucial role in Canada's successful recovery. It allowed our government to reach the largest number of Canadians in the most effective and efficient way possible. Advertising is essential to the success of any government programs or services that benefit Canadians and Canada. It is the best practice that governments in Canada and around the world have used to great benefit.

I am proud of all the government programs and initiatives that have been discussed here today. It is absolutely crucial to ensure that Canadians are aware of these opportunities so they can take advantage of them. It is shameful that members opposite would oppose informing Canadians of programs that would benefit them, especially because the money our government spends on advertising goes into advertisements. When the previous Liberal government spent money on advertising, it went into the pockets of friends of the Liberal Party. The Liberals should be ashamed of themselves.

[Business of Supply, April 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise in the House today to speak in opposition to the motion on government advertising.

Mr. Speaker, your hon. predecessors have indicated in prior rulings that the government should be careful that its communication products, particularly its advertisements, do not convey the message that proposed legislation has been passed or will be passed in its current form. I can assure members that our government has been very vigilant in ensuring that communications materials indicate that new initiatives still before Parliament are proposed or subject to parliamentary approval.

There are government policies in place regarding the nature of the advertising the government can undertake.

The communications policy is one such policy. It is an extremely robust policy that provides direction to ensure that Canadians receive “timely, accurate...objective and complete information” about the government's “policies, programs, services and initiatives”. The policy states that in “the Canadian system of parliamentary democracy and responsible government, the government has the duty to explain its policies and decisions, and to inform the public of its priorities for the country.”

The policy also helps to ensure the government departments and agencies are “visible, accessible and accountable to the public they serve” and that their communication activities “safeguard Canadians' trust and confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the Public Service of Canada”. The policy has clear standards of accountability. Its goal “is to ensure that communications are well-coordinated, effectively managed“ and, most notably, “responsive to the diverse information needs” of Canadians.

The policy sets out 10 interconnected and interdependent policy commitments based on Canadian and public service values, statutes and regulations. It has 30 policy requirements. It also sets out roles and responsibilities for each institution involved in implementing the policy. Its procedures provide specific directions for advertising, publishing and public opinion research.

I want to take a moment to clarify what the communications policy says with regard to advertising. It clearly states that departments and agencies “may place advertisements...to inform Canadians about their rights or responsibilities, about government policies, programs, services or initiatives, or about dangers or risks to public health, safety or the environment”. It also states that departments and agencies must “ensure advertising campaigns...are aligned with government priorities...themes and messages”.

There seems to be a lot of misconception around how government advertising is planned and executed. Allow me to describe how the process works, for the benefit of the House.

Contrary to the motion before us today, the government advertising process involves many stakeholders that provide checks and balances. As my hon. colleagues may know, the Privy Council Office works with the departments to develop a government advertising plan that supports the priorities identified in the Speech from the Throne and the budget. Once approved by cabinet, the plan is sent to Treasury Board for funding approval. Once funding is secured, departments work with Public Works and Government Services Canada to implement their campaigns.

The Privy Council Office provides critical oversight throughout the entire process, and departments evaluate their campaigns and report on their results. The departments work closely with the Privy Council Office to develop advertising proposals. The proposals provide a detailed overview of the advertising campaign, including its objectives, key messages and government priorities it supports. Departments also consult one another to identify areas of common interests and opportunities to collaborate.

This type of collaboration is an example of how government treats taxpayer dollars with respect.

[Petitions, April 24th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased to present a petition from my beautiful riding of Yellowhead. My constituents are calling on the Government of Canada to pass legislation recognizing pre-born children as separate victims when they are injured or killed during the commission of an offence against their mothers, allowing two charges to be laid against the offender instead of just one.

[Rail Service, April 20th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be here today to support Motion No. 550 and to speak about our government's ongoing work to provide an increased level of rail service throughout Canada.

Our government has already taken steps to improve rail service for all shippers in Canada and in doing so, has enhanced the competitiveness of the Canadian economy and the economic prosperity of all Canadians.

As part of our government's response to the events last winter that hampered the timely and efficient movement of western grain to market, the Minister of Transport advanced the launch of the statutory review of the Canada Transportation Act by a full year. In doing so, she gave the review panel the explicit mandate to consider the provisions of the act that are relevant to the transportation of grain by rail, while taking into account the broader goal of a commercially based, market-driven, multi-modal transportation system that delivers the best possible service to all users. Many of the provisions that are relevant to the movement of grain also apply more broadly to supply chains for the movement of other export commodities that are dependent upon rail and upon which the success of Canada's exporters is based.

I should note that the review panel will also examine the act to ensure that Canada's rail system has the capacity and adaptability that will allow it and its users to respond effectively to changing economic conditions in both international and domestic markets. This examination includes a look at the major trends on an international and domestic basis that are relevant to the understanding of future demands for transportation capacity in Canada. In turn, this will help us understand whether existing or planned capacity and performance improvements will respond sufficiently to these needs and can address periodic demands for surge capacity.

As many of my hon. colleagues probably already know, the review panel has been quite active since its launch. It has issued a discussion paper, called for submissions and met with the stakeholders throughout the country, and its work continues. I think my hon. colleagues would also agree that it is important that we let the review panel conduct its work in an independent fashion and await its recommendations.

Our government is proud to work with its stakeholders to build a world-class transportation system.

I am pleased to highlight two initiatives to enhance the collaboration among all participants in Canada's supply chains to address issues and ensure Canadian exports can reach their markets in a timely and efficient way.

The first initiative is to establish a commodity supply chain table last summer by the Minister of Transport. The table provides a forum for shippers, railways, ports, terminals and other partners in the rail-based supply chains to work together on ways to improve the speed and efficiency with which Canada's commodity exports reach their markets.

This important co-operative forum brings together key representatives from Canada's agricultural, forestry, chemical and petroleum product sectors with those from its railroads, ports, grain elevators and shipowners to work together in a collaborative fashion to identify issues and explore potential solutions to the challenges facing Canada's rail-based supply chain.

This table meets twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring. Facilitated by officials from Transport Canada it promotes exchanges on logistical issues affecting supply chains in Canada for bulk commodities that are shipped by rail. It also gives service providers and shippers in these supply chains the opportunity to share information on trends and expected future traffic and commodity movements. In this respect, one of the table's top priorities is to work on the development of performance metrics that will help to increase the transparency and visibility of the system's overall performance and identify areas where improvements may be needed.

The second initiative is our government's Asia-Pacific intermodal performance committee of the national transportation system performance table, which is also managed by Transport Canada. This committee is an initiative that engages the public and private sectors with the goal of improving the efficiency and competitiveness of the supply chain for containers moving through Canada's west coast over the long term.

The committee is composed of a cross section of major transportation, shipping and labour interests operating in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia. It uses a monthly scorecard of metrics to tackle supply chain issues that are common to the users and beyond the capacity of single organizations to resolve.

I would like to note that this table follows on the success of another forum, the winter contingency planning table. That was established to enhance co-operation between shippers, the railroads and terminal operators at Port Metro Vancouver, and to improve the performance and capacity of the Asian-Pacific gateway by addressing winter-related supply chain issues. Participants at this table share information on forecasts for commodity movements and expected changes to the capacity and infrastructure improvements, as well as discuss specific issues and potential solutions to the problems that arose during the previous winter season.

In summary, the Minister of Transport launched a review of the Canada Transportation Act a full year ahead of schedule in response to problems that emerged in the rail-based supply chain for moving western grain. Its recommendations will provide the opportunity to improve the capacity and service for all of those who rely on the railways to move their products to the market.

This government is taking the necessary steps to build a world-class transportation system which Canadian firms and exporters can rely on to succeed in competitive domestic and international marketplaces. We will continue to listen to all stakeholders in an effort to implement an economic, legal and regulatory framework that reflects the importance of rail service and capacity for the Canadian economy and the Canadian agricultural sector.

[Birthday Congratulations, March 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, on Saturday, March 21, I had the honour of speaking at the annual rally of the Wildwood Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 149, in my riding of Yellowhead. It was there that I had the pleasure of meeting a wonderful young lady named Ruby Huddleston, a long-time volunteer and legion member. Upon meeting Ruby, she informed me that she was having her 90th birthday on March 26 and she invited me to her birthday party to be held at Wildwood's local community hall.

I would like to extend my sincere wishes for a very special 90th birthday to Ruby. I salute her and all of the legion volunteers for all the work they are doing, and will be doing, on behalf of our veterans.

God bless and happy birthday.

[Taxation, March 26th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, our government knows that there are many costs involved in raising a family and every little bit counts, especially when there are children. That is why our government has cut taxes of all kinds: personal taxes, business taxes, the GST.

Can the Minister of State for Social Development please update the House on what our government is doing to help Canadian families?