Information & Ethics committee  I would say not really, and it's not because of Palantir or any of the controversy around it. We actually received a lot of offers from firms to provide support pro bono. I think that in many cases people want to do the right thing and they want to help out the country, but it's

Information & Ethics committee  Yes, absolutely.

Information & Ethics committee  I don't have the figures at hand. I can give you a very brief answer, given the allotted time. There have been cases where the government has made a purchase. There have been others where it has made an investment, for example, through the strategic innovation fund. There have b

Information & Ethics committee  The shortcomings were obvious to us in the spring. For example, there was tremendous pressure with regard to masks. The projections pointed to a shortage of masks. It wasn't really possible to obtain enough masks from abroad. In some sectors, the pressure was enormous. We were aw

Information & Ethics committee  Mr. Chair, no, they did not. I was subject to the requirement not to deal with Mr. MacNaughton, but other than that, there were no other requirements I'm aware of, and certainly no commentary beyond that.

Information & Ethics committee  No, Mr. Chair, I have not.

Information & Ethics committee  I think that question should go to Mr. Dion, the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. From what I understand—

Information & Ethics committee  I suspect it was because I attended a meeting where he was present. I was in the same room, a virtual room, with Mr. MacNaughton only once. Other than that, there's no reason for this order, because that's the only interaction I've had with him.

Information & Ethics committee  I'm aware of the dangers. I behave in a way that clearly demonstrates that I work in an ethical manner and in accordance with the rules. This is normal. Even if there is no crisis, for all senior officials like me, this is the way we do business. Obviously, I don't want to creat

Information & Ethics committee  We have some requirements. First, the rules must be followed. This is always important, because breaking the rules can put all other cases at risk. So following the rules is paramount. At the same time, we had to act very quickly. So, we had to respect all the rules while procee

Information & Ethics committee  Thank you.

Information & Ethics committee  Well, I'll use the example of the strategic innovation fund, but it would apply to other programming. If we're going to partner and perhaps make an investment in a company, then we want to have a sense of the risk that's being presented for the taxpayer. The risk can come in a

Information & Ethics committee  We noticed that there was a lack of capacity in several areas. I could come back to you later on and give you more information. At the beginning of the pandemic, it wasn't just about vaccines; there was a lack of gloves, masks, all kinds of clothing for doctors and personal prot

Information & Ethics committee  The software package that was described to us was called Foundry. To be frank, it was clear that it was very sophisticated. I had knowledge of the kind of needs we had—certainly in my ministry—and it was pretty clear this thing was a lot more sophisticated than anything we would

Information & Ethics committee  Mr. Chair, I've been a part of many of them. I feel very privileged to have the role I have. I feel like I'm doing important work on behalf of the government and on behalf of Canadians, so you will never hear me complaining, and I think that's true of many of my colleagues. I wa