Government Operations committee  What you're saying in effect is that you don't have anything from Crown corporations.

Government Operations committee  Just to respond to that, it would seem to me that Crown corporations are more likely than departments to be the sources of the information that the public wants. They have particular functions that relate to the public and it would seem to me that they should be at the forefront

Government Operations committee  Yes. What is clearly not open data?

Government Operations committee  Okay. You talk about how this open data is going to create a larger economy, etc. What proof do you have that this will contribute to improving our economy?

Government Operations committee  If you can't prove there's any economic benefit, I don't think you should be touting an economic benefit until it can be proven.

Government Operations committee  Good morning, Minister. I have just a few questions. The first one is on equalization. I'd like to know how much we are transferring to provinces on equalization, and maybe it's too complicated to tell me, but roughly how much each province gets. What are the criteria for equal

Government Operations committee  Can you tell me what the criteria are?

Government Operations committee  Well, I did a little bit of research. My understanding is that Hydro-Québec is excluded from calculations of the revenues of the Province of Quebec, yet Hydro-Québec, in the 2012 numbers, which are the last ones I can find, gave the province $900 million in taxes. Is this accurat

Government Operations committee  I never get to talk to the Department of Finance. Okay. I'll try another one, and you'll tell me it's some other organization. Under the Constitution, education is a provincial matter, yet I think we are giving something like $10 billion a year to universities. Why are we doin

Government Operations committee  Yes, and I accept the research thing—that's pretty common-sense—and we're involved in training, but a heck of a lot of money is going to university students for loans and things like that.

Government Operations committee  Why are we into that area?

Government Operations committee  I'm not arguing about whether they're paid back or not. I'm not worried about losing money. The issue is, isn't this a provincial responsibility? Aren't provinces responsible to run their universities and to keep their students at university, not the federal government?

Government Operations committee  Yes, I know, but—

Government Operations committee  —aren't we interfering with provincial jurisdiction?

Government Operations committee  I paid my own way.