Mr. David Christopherson, M.P. Dear David: As a follow-up to my letter of October 16, 2013, I am pleased to provide you with an update on Industry Canada’s progress in implementing the recommendations of the Office of the Auditor General’s (OAG’s) 2012 Report of Transfer Payments to the Aerospace Sector. In my October 2013 letter, I indicated that, at the time of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts’ February 2013 meeting, my Department had already implemented five of the OAG’s seven recommendations. Since that time, we have ensured that all departmental policies and procedures meet (and will continue to meet) the requirements of the Treasury Board of Canada’s Policy on Transfer Payments (TPP). For example, a Corporate Risk Management Framework was developed and launched to provide guidance to program managers on the application of risk management to their respective programs. As a result, the Department is now compliant with all TPP requirements and this recommendation has been fully implemented. In addition, with respect to program evaluation, I am pleased to report that, in keeping with the Committee’s recommendation, the Bombardier CSeries evaluation was advanced by two years and was completed in November 2013. In terms of outcomes and benefits, the evaluation found that the Bombardier CSeries program contributed to the creation and maintenance of direct R&D jobs at the recipient company, Bombardier Aerospace, as well as at supply chain companies involved in the development of the aircraft. We have also advanced the evaluation of the Technology Partnerships Canada (TPC) program, which will start in 2014–15 rather than in 2015–16. The Strategic Aerospace and Defence Initiative (SADI) evaluation will be conducted in 2016–17 to ensure that sufficient time has passed to allow for the completion of projects and for the results to be available. Upon completion of the TPC and SADI evaluations, all the recommendations of the OAG’s Report will be fully implemented. I trust that this information addresses the Committee’s needs. Thank you for your interest in Canada’s aerospace sector. Please accept my best wishes. Sincerely, The Honourable James Moore, P.C., M.P. |