Public Accounts committee  The plan now is to use the same process we use for the O and M carry-forward, whereby it shows up in the appropriation of the following year. It's identified specifically as the carry-forward amount from the previous year.

Public Accounts committee  No, it wouldn't be.

Public Accounts committee  Okay.

Public Accounts committee  Mr. Chair, I think you've hit on an important issue about the government's appropriations and how they are provided on an annual basis. As noted in the report, the Treasury Board has undertaken a series of pilot projects with departments focused on capital expenditures, because of the problems the government runs into at the end of the fiscal year, whereby if money is not spent, it lapses.

Government Operations committee  We can certainly endeavour to look into that. Canada Lands operates with an implementation mandate when these properties have passed over. If a requirement was identified, it should have been brought to the attention of the Minister of Defence and, as part of his proposal to the Treasury Board, he would have indicated that affordable housing needs to be part of the solution that Canada Lands puts in place.

Government Operations committee  Madam Chair, the honourable member makes a valid point in terms of the coordination required in the disposal of properties such as old military bases. There is a requirement for the minister, in this case the Minister of National Defence, to confirm with other departments whether or not other federal requirements could go on there.

Government Operations committee  We think these pilots are extremely important because of the principle at play here. We undertook a review of all capital assets across government in the past couple of years. The number one recommendation that came out of departments had to do with the barrier that departments face at the end of the fiscal year, in that you either spend the money or lose it; it lapses.

Government Operations committee  Madam Chair, what we've tried to do at the Treasury Board is recognize that we're not only talking about office space, but about what we call special purpose space as well. So for example, DND, the RCMP, or Agriculture Canada would have their own facilities in a certain geographical area, in addition to the office accommodation that their public servants may require in order to perform their functions.

Government Operations committee  You're probably accurate in your assessment. We always say that the program requirement for the individual minister takes precedence. So if the individual minister makes a compelling case that the call centre needs to be in Mississauga and convinces her cabinet or the ministers at Treasury Board that this is the case, it's difficult to challenge them, other than with the back-and-forth banter that we would like to....

Government Operations committee  Madam Chair, I'll defer to my colleagues at Public Works. I'm at the Treasury Board. I'm familiar with the case. We are working quite closely with our colleagues at Public Works and Government Services right now to look at that transaction. Regarding the specifics of the case, for commercial confidentiality purposes I'm not sure how much we can divulge right now, but I'll defer to my Public Works colleagues, who can explain some of the general background at this time.