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Results: 16 - 30 of 393
Jean-François Tremblay
View Jean-François Tremblay Profile
Jean-François Tremblay
2021-05-28 14:41
The portal is up and running. I've been using it myself. It works very well. When I have discussions with stakeholders, including universities and so on, they all mention how useful it is to have such a tool. I don't have the numbers on how many people actually have accessed it and access it on a regular basis, but that's something we can do. Also, at some point, if the committee specifically wants a briefing on how to use it, what exactly is there and what we're thinking for the future, we would be more than pleased to do that. I'm sure our scientists and our data group would be more than pleased to brief the committee.
View Tony Van Bynen Profile
Lib. (ON)
Thank you.
Throughout this entire study and even through our previous study, we heard from numerous witnesses about the importance of sharing health data across Canada. While we've mostly heard about this in the context of COVID-19, I think it's applicable to other health-related contexts.
Do you see a benefit in such a system, and if so, would it impact the efforts to prevent and to manage diseases across the country?
Theresa Tam
View Theresa Tam Profile
Theresa Tam
2021-05-21 11:55
Mr. Chair, that is a very important question.
I think public health policy should be driven by data. We have had data presented, and it has to come from the local level up to the national level, so I do think we've seen data improve over time. This is the first pandemic where we're having case-by-case data reported nationally through the pan-Canadian health data strategy. With the safe restart agreements and the resources being provided to the provinces and territories, we have seen improvements in the data being gathered, including on race, indigeneity and occupation. That has improved, and that kind of improvement must be taken forward as we look to keep going and strengthening that data system.
Anthony Farrell
View Anthony Farrell Profile
Anthony Farrell
2021-05-12 16:49
Thank you for the invitation to speak today. As already noted, I'm a professor in land and food systems in the department of zoology at UBC. I hold a Canada research chair tier one in fish physiology, culture and conservation. I'm a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, and a fellow of the Canadian Geographical Society. I obtained my Ph.D. in zoology at UBC many years ago. I've held academic positions previously at biology departments at the University of New Brunswick and Mount Allison University in New Brunswick, and Simon Fraser University in British Columbia.
In almost a 50-year research career, I've focused predominantly on the physiology of a crucial life support system in fishes, which is their cardio-respiratory system. I work predominantly with B.C. salmonids, but I have researched fish on every continent, including Antarctica, studying over 100 different fish species. I've published over 470 peer-reviewed journal publications, 31 co-edited book volumes, and a three-volume encyclopedia of fish physiology.
My research collaborations are wide in B.C. They have included Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Pacific Salmon Commission, the Pacific Salmon Foundation, Go Fish BC, commercial fishers, first nations and industry. Among my publications, about 140 of them deal broadly with the conservation physiology of salmon, which is a passion for me. About 50 of the publications deal with assessing sublethal consequences of infections, diseases and toxicants. I was the expert who would have investigated the consequences to salmon of experimental pathogen infections for the strategic salmon health initiative led by Dr. Miller-Saunders and Dr. Riddell. In fact, I've co-authored 21 publications with Dr. Miller-Saunders.
In terms of aquaculture, I was a member of the Honourable John Fraser's B.C. Pacific Salmon Forum. Also, I was a member of Dr. Mona Nemer's Independent Expert Panel on Aquaculture Science, which reported to DFO.
At the request of the provincial Minister of the Environment I was commissioned to review the 2019 Newfoundland and Labrador south coast mortality event of cultured Atlantic salmon. That was authored by Burke, Gardner and Farrell.
Thus, beyond basic science discovery, I seek direct application of my research and knowledge to issues such as salmon conservation; assessing sublethal consequences of infections, diseases and toxicants to salmon; and also sustainable salmonid aquaculture.
If you're interested, I have three messages that I will happily expand on, as time allows.
My first is a comment. I believe, having watched earlier versions of these meetings, that crucial peer-reviewed literature, that which is relevant to wild salmon management because it has investigated the actual impacts to salmon of deliberate disease infections, is being ignored by certain communications to this committee.
The second one is a recommendation of sorts to DFO. DFO needs to make its information and data pertaining to both aquaculture and to wild salmon more readily available, and in that I mean more user-friendly, which is the case in Norway.
My third and last point is that aquaculture decision-making must become more locally based, particularly in B.C. It needs to be evenly applied from coast to coast to coast. To do so, DFO will need to devolve some of its regulatory powers to the local peoples, as is the case in Norway.
Thank you very much.
View Patricia Lattanzio Profile
Lib. (QC)
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Therrien, for your testimony this morning. It was quite informative.
What I'm drawing from it is that there's a constant need of striking a balance between individual human rights, public confidence and economic growth. It's going to be quite a difficult task, because technology is forever evolving and it's going at a very fast pace. In my opinion, a restudy is more than warranted as we do not know when we will get Bill C-11.
On the question of cross-border data, that's of interest to me because given the nature of cross-border data, as it flows, it adheres to international best practices and standards, which will be instrumental for ensuring Canadian competitiveness.
Is it correct to say—and I want to go back to that European notion you were talking about earlier—that the EU data protection regulation remains the international gold standard? How can Canada ensure equivalency with this regulation? That would be my first question.
Why is it in Canada's interests to retain the equivalency with the EU?
Daniel Therrien
View Daniel Therrien Profile
Daniel Therrien
2021-05-10 12:47
The government certainly cited the desirability of Canada maintaining adequacy status in the EU as one impetus for Bill C-11. Indeed, maintaining adequacy is important. It allows data flows between Canada and the EU without specific mechanisms, like special contracts and the like.
Clearly, for Canada maintaining adequacy is helpful in order to maintain a freer flow of data between Canada and the EU. Beyond the EU, as I've said, we live in an interconnected world, and obviously, we have a neighbour to the south with whom we have very significant fundamental commercial relations, so data also needs to flow there.
I think that's all good, but we need to.... Hopefully, in the context of the review of Bill C-11, we can look at ways to allow these data flows, but in a way that recognizes that when data leaves Canada, the risks are higher.
I'm not advocating for ways to prevent these data flows, but certainly, in the submission you will now be able to read, we make certain recommendations on how to enhance the protection of personal information when it does leave Canada, while still allowing that.
View Pat Kelly Profile
CPC (AB)
That's a fantastic point. Hopefully we'll have the minister here on this study at some point, and the minister should answer that question.
It would seem to me that complexity shouldn't enter into it. If you ask for a document and your corporate structure is too complicated to comply, then that should be on the filer.
Debi Daviau
View Debi Daviau Profile
Debi Daviau
2021-05-06 16:11
Mr. Kelly, we used to have international tax units that were very well organized and could work together more effectively to produce those kinds of documents, but those units were broken down some 10 or so years ago in favour of interspersing these tax experts within more generalized teams. That has reduced the capacity of employees at the CRA to be able to deliver on getting international tax avoiders to pay their fair share.
View Sean Fraser Profile
Lib. (NS)
View Sean Fraser Profile
2021-05-06 16:15
Thank you very much, Mr. Cohen. I'll use some of the examples you discussed, particularly in the global context of this problem, for my next question to Ms. Daviau.
Ms. Daviau, you mentioned that one of the things we continue to need to do is explore further initiatives on the international stage and co-operate with our global partners to ensure that we can stamp out tax evasion globally. What actions can the federal government in Canada take to help contribute to the global solution to the issue of tax evasion?
Ryan Campbell
View Ryan Campbell Profile
Ryan Campbell
2021-05-06 16:16
The biggest issue that has been advocated by auditors at the Canada Revenue Agency, based on their work, is to focus on corporate tax evasion. The scale is much larger. The PBO has identified that as much as $25 billion a year could be accessible or unlocked from tax havens if the right provisions were in place. In order to do that, it's really necessary to reorient the way the tax system is structured and to reform the current state.
Right now when an international corporation makes a sale, they have some discretion to transfer the profit or to modify the price within internal supply chains to book the value of that sale in a low-tax jurisdiction. From the standpoint of CRA auditors, it's a game of cat and mouse to try to figure out exactly what the fair market value of that transaction was and determine whether or not it was on the level.
In order to tip the scales back in favour of companies being taxed fairly everywhere, there's a specific combination of different reforms that can be put in place, or broad principles, a combination of which would solve the problem.
One is a formulary allocation of profits, which is basically a change in criteria that are currently in use in Canada that determine how corporations' profits are booked from province to province.
The other is unitary treatment to make sure that when these transactions happen between a parent company and a subsidiary, leading to this transfer pricing and profits being booked in low-tax jurisdictions instead of where the commerce actually happens, the corporations are treated globally as a unitary entity—
View Luc Berthold Profile
CPC (QC)
That seems to be a political comment to me. That is why I wanted to let you know. The auditor general's comments are usually very well documented and based on specific elements.
I do not disagree with what you said, but I wanted to know why it was indicated in that way. This is literally a comment on government policy. This comment is more political than based on facts.
I am just making a quick comment, but I don't blame you for it. I also think this was an absolutely essential program. It was worth mentioning this element.
Mr. Hamilton, I wanted to talk to you about communication among departments. I saw in your action plan that you were going to put in efforts to improve that communication.
I recently received from the minister a letter about a completely different issue. I am talking about the famous issue between Service Canada and the Canada Revenue Agency concerning the Canada recovery caregiving benefit, or CRCB. For people to be able to obtain answers, data must be shared between a CRA agent and a Service Canada agent.
Don't you think it is high time for the two organization to talk to each other and find a solution to those communication and data sharing issues, since those problems have been surfacing more and more frequently?
Bob Hamilton
View Bob Hamilton Profile
Bob Hamilton
2021-05-04 12:12
That is indeed an issue for us in general.
In the action plan, we mentioned a few changes concerning situations where it is necessary to obtain information from another department.
For example, at the Department of Immigration, it is important to have information on newcomers, as well as on people emigrating from Canada. So we exchange information with the Canada Border Services Agency, or CBSA, but—
View Luc Berthold Profile
CPC (QC)
Do those exchanges have to be done from person to person? Can the information be obtained electronically?
Bob Hamilton
View Bob Hamilton Profile
Bob Hamilton
2021-05-04 12:13
That's what I'm getting at. We're increasingly using an automated system in which systems specific to both departments can communicate with each other. It isn't necessary to have someone from CBSA talking to someone from the Department of Immigration.
This poses a challenge, however, since each agency and department has its own system. I hope that we'll gradually develop systems that can communicate with each other. We've already made a great deal of progress in this area, but there's still a lot to do. This is important for the future, given the largely digital economy.
We have processes, but we need to improve them and automate them more for Canadians. You're right about that.
View Luc Berthold Profile
CPC (QC)
In your opinion, is the Treasury Board paying enough attention to this issue? Is it putting enough pressure on different departments to find a solution quickly?
Results: 16 - 30 of 393 | Page: 2 of 27

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