Questions and responses All Sessions January 17, 1994, to present

What is the total amount of government funding since fiscal year 1998-1999 up to and including the current fiscal year, allocated within the constituency of Winnipeg North, listing each department or agency, initiative, and amount?

With respect to the government task force announced May 7, 2008 to stem the trade in illicit tobacco products, headed by the Department of Public Safety and including the RCMP, Canada Border Services Agency, Canada Revenue Agency, Finance Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Health Canada and Indian Affairs and Northern Development Canada: (a) on what occasions has the task force met between May 7, 2008 and March 1, 2009; (b) what resources (personnel and budget) have been allocated to the task force’s work; (c) what concrete measures to prevent contraband tobacco has the task force recommended be implemented; and (d) what communications have taken place between the task force and First Nations communities and other organizations that have expressed concern over the contraband issue?

With respect to the government’s actions to detect, prevent and treat Lyme disease in Canada: (a) by what standard is the accuracy of Lyme disease testing conducted at the National Microbiological Laboratories evaluated; (b) when was the most recent independent evaluation of the proficiency of this testing conducted, by whom and what were the results; (c) what are the current criteria for determining whether a geographical area is deemed to be endemic for Lyme-infected ticks; (d) what is the projected schedule of field study with regard to such endemic areas; (e) with respect to the recommendations of the National Conference on Lyme Disease hosted by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) in March 2006, (i) have the committees to develop new guidelines on surveillance, clinical and laboratory criteria been formed and, if so, when have they met, (ii) what stakeholder groups have participated in the development of new guidelines, what form has that participation taken, and when did it occur; (f) what is the government's strategy to protect canadians from the increase in incidents of Lyme disease anticipated by PHAC; (g) what is PHAC's strategy to increase (i) physicians' and other health professionals' awareness of the symptoms of Lyme disease, (ii) the canadian public's awareness of the symptoms of Lyme disease; (h) what measures has the PHAC taken in conjunction with provincial health authorities to increase professional and public awareness; (i) what are PHAC's measurable targets for the future increase of awareness and diagnostic accuracy of Lyme disease; (j) does Health Canada recommend the screening of blood for Lyme disease or co-infections such as babesiosis, as done in the United States and, if not, why not; and (k) what research projects into lyme borelia and tick-borne co-infections, their epidemiology, their possible role in the occurence of other diseases, and their treatment are currently being funded by the government and have been government funded during the past five years?

With respect to the government’s cessation of funding for the First Nations and Inuit Tobacco Control Strategy announced on September 25, 2006: (a) as the evaluation of this strategy was not completed until March 2007, on what evidence of not providing “value for money” was the decision to cut funding based; (b) as the former Minister of Health, who has acknowledged the need to address the serious health implications of higher-than-average smoking rates in First Nations and Inuit populations, has given public reassurances – to the Standing Committee on Health on November 23, 2006 – that funding will be revived once a revised strategy has been developed, (i) what steps has the government taken since September 2006 to develop a revised strategy, (ii) what is the target date for the initiation of the revised strategy and its full funding; and (c) as the strategy’s evaluation document cited the absence of statistical data as an impediment in evaluation, will the collection of baseline and ongoing national tobacco use statistical data specific to First Nations and Inuit be included in the revised strategy and its funding?

With respect to United Nations conventions and treaties to which Canada is a signatory: (a) what are the federal government’s criteria for assessing individual provincial and territorial endorsement for ratifying a treaty or convention; (b) as of November 1, 2008, which provinces and territories have, according to these criteria, endorsed ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (the Convention); (c) what steps will be undertaken by the government to secure endorsement by the remaining provinces and territories; (d) when is the next federal-provincial-territorial ministerial meeting on human rights scheduled and will Convention ratification be on the agenda of that meeting; (e) has the Convention been added to the list of international human rights treaties and conventions that are standing items on meeting agendas of the Continuing Committee of Officials on Human Rights (CCOHR); (f) has progress on the ratification process for the Convention been discussed at CCOHR meetings and what is the status of that progress as of November 1, 2008 according to the minutes of those meetings; (g) is the target date for the completion of consultations with the provinces and territories on the ratification of the Convention within the required timeframe to permit Canada to participate fully in the first meeting of States party to the Convention, expected in November 2008, to chart the oversight committee’s future course and, if not, why not; (h) what is the federal government’s criteria for assessing individual provincial and territorial endorsement for signing the Optional Protocol of an international treaty; (i) as of November 1, 2008, which provinces and territories have, according to these criteria, endorsed Canada signing the Optional Protocol of the Convention; and (j) has progress on signing the Optional Protocol for the Convention been discussed at CCOHR meetings and what is the status of that progress as of November 1, 2008, according to the minutes of those meetings?

With respect to the government’s actions to detect, prevent and treat Lyme disease in Canada: (a) by what standard is the accuracy of Lyme disease testing conducted at the National Microbiological Laboratories evaluated; (b) when was the most recent independent evaluation of the proficiency of this testing conducted, by whom and what were the results; (c) what are the current criteria for determining whether a geographical area is deemed to be endemic for Lyme-infected ticks; (d) what is the projected schedule of field study with regard to such endemic areas; (e) with respect to the recommendations of the National Conference on Lyme Disease hosted by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) in March 2006, (i) have the committees to develop new guidelines on surveillance, clinical and laboratory criteria been formed and, if so, when have they met, (ii) what stakeholder groups have participated in the development of new guidelines, what form has that participation taken, and when did it occur; (f) what is the government's strategy to protect canadians from the increase in incidents of Lyme disease anticipated by PHAC; (g) what is PHAC's strategy to increase (i) physicians' and other health professionals' awareness of the symptoms of Lyme disease, (ii) the canadian public's awareness of the symptoms of Lyme disease; (h) what measures has the PHAC taken in conjunction with provincial health authorities to increase professional and public awareness; (i) what are PHAC's measurable targets for the future increase of awareness and diagnostic accuracy of Lyme disease; (j) does Health Canada recommend the screening of blood for Lyme disease or co-infections such as babesiosis, as done in the United States and, if not, why not; and (k) what research projects into lyme borelia and tick-borne co-infections, their epidemiology, their possible role in the occurence of other diseases, and their treatment are currently being funded by the government and have been government funded during the past five years?

With respect to the government’s cessation of funding for the First Nations and Inuit Tobacco Control Strategy announced on September 25, 2006: (a) as the evaluation of this strategy was not completed until March 2007, on what evidence of not providing “value for money” was the decision to cut funding based; (b) as the Minister of Health, who has acknowledged the need to address the serious health implications of higher-than-average smoking rates in First Nations and Inuit populations, has given public reassurances – to the Standing Committee on Health on November 23, 2006 – that funding will be revived once a revised strategy has been developed, (i) what steps has the government taken since September 2006 to develop a revised strategy, (ii) what is the target date for the initiation of the revised strategy and its full funding; and (c) as the strategy’s evaluation document cited the absence of statistical data as an impediment in evaluation, will the collection of baseline and ongoing national tobacco use statistical data specific to First Nations and Inuit be included in the revised strategy and its funding?

With respect to United Nations conventions and treaties to which Canada is a signatory: (a) what is the federal government’s criteria for assessing individual provincial and territorial endorsement for ratifying a treaty or convention; (b) as of November 1, 2008, which provinces and territories have, according to this criteria, endorsed ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (the Convention); (c) what steps will be undertaken by the government to secure endorsement by the remaining provinces and territories; (d) when is the next federal-provincial-territorial ministerial meeting on human rights scheduled and will Convention ratification be on the agenda of that meeting; (e) has the Convention been added to the list of international human rights treaties and conventions that are standing items on meeting agendas of the Continuing Committee of Officials on Human Rights (CCOHR); (f) has progress on the ratification process for the Convention been discussed at CCOHR meetings and what is the status of that progress as of November 1, 2008 according to the minutes of those meetings; (g) is the target date for the completion of consultations with the provinces and territories on the ratification of the Convention within the required timeframe to permit Canada to participate fully in the first meeting of States party to the Convention, expected in November 2008, to chart the oversight committee’s future course and, if not, why not; (h) what is the federal government’s criteria for assessing individual provincial and territorial endorsement for signing the Optional Protocol of an international treaty; (i) as of November 1, 2008, which provinces and territories have, according to this criteria, endorsed Canada signing the Optional Protocol of the Convention; and (j) has progress on signing the Optional Protocol for the Convention been discussed at CCOHR meetings and what is the status of that progress as of November 1, 2008, according to the minutes of those meetings?

With respect to the government’s actions to detect, prevent and treat Lyme disease in Canada: (a) by what standard is the accuracy of Lyme disease testing conducted at the National Microbiological Laboratories evaluated; (b) when was the most recent independent evaluation of the proficiency of this testing conducted, by whom and what were the results; (c) what are the current criteria for determining whether a geographical area is deemed to be endemic for Lyme-infected ticks; (d) what is the projected schedule of field study with regard to such endemic areas; (e) with respect to the recommendations of the National Conference on Lyme Disease hosted by the Public Health Agency of Canada in March 2006, (i) have the committees to develop new guidelines on surveillance, clinical and laboratory criteria been formed and, if so, when have they met, (ii) what stakeholder groups have participated in the development of new guidelines, what form has that participation taken, and when did it occur; (f) what is the government's strategy to protect canadians from the increase in incidents of Lyme disease anticipated by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC); (g) what is PHAC's strategy to increase (i) physicians' and other health professionals' awareness of the symptoms of Lyme disease, (ii) the canadian public's awareness of the symptoms of Lyme disease; (h) what measures has the PHAC taken in conjunction with provincial health authorities to increase professional and public awareness; (i) what are PHAC's measurable targets for the future increase of awareness and diagnostic accuracy of Lyme disease; (j) does Health Canada recommend the screening of blood for Lyme disease or co-infections such as babesiosis, as done in the United States and, if not, why not; and (k) what research projects into lyme borelia and tick-borne co-infections, their epidemiology, their possible role in the occurence of other diseases, and their treatment are currently being funded by the government and have been government funded during the past five years?

With respect to the government’s cessation of funding for the First Nations and Inuit Tobacco Control Strategy announced on September 25, 2006: (a) as the evaluation of this strategy was not completed until March 2007, on what evidence of not providing “value for money” was the decision to cut funding based; (b) as the Minister of Health, who has acknowledged the need to address the serious health implications of higher-than-average smoking rates in First Nations and Inuit populations, has given public reassurances – to the Standing Committee on Health on November 23, 2006 – that funding will be revived once a revised strategy has been developed, (i) what steps has the government taken since September 2006 to develop a revised strategy, (ii) what is the target date for the initiation of the revised strategy and its full funding; and (c) as the strategy’s evaluation document cited the absence of statistical data as an impediment in evaluation, will the collection of baseline and ongoing national tobacco use statistical data specific to First Nations and Inuit be included in the revised strategy and its funding?

With regard to Canada’s obligations under the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control: (a) since the government ratified the Convention on November 27, 2004, what measures has it taken to bring Canadian law into conformity with article 11 regarding the labelling of tobacco products; and (b) what is the date by which the government intends to require warning labels that conform with the Convention to be affixed to all tobacco products sold in Canada?

With regard to the government's response to Canada's 3rd most common chronic disease arthritis: (a) what systems are currently in place to track the number of cases of arthritis and its treatment; (b) what is the extent of Health Canada's resource allocation (in dollars, person-hours, etc.) to arthritis; (c) how many physicians specializing in the treatment of arthritis are currently in practice in each province; (d) what is the national standard for the education and training of family physicians regarding the diagnosis and treatment of arthritis; (e) what is the total amount of federal research money devoted to arthritis research; and (f) how is Health Canada meeting its specific responsibilities for Aboriginal health to ensure that Aboriginal Canadians suffering from arthritis have timely and equal access to diagnosis and treatment?

With regard to the Temporary Resident Permits issued by the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration during the 39th Parliament up until and including November 30, 2007, how many requests were received by the Minister according to federal electoral district, indicating whether or not the permit was granted?

With respect to tax laws: (a) what kind of fines levied against corporations can be written off; (b) does this apply equally to domestic and foreign based companies; (c) what percentage of levied fines can be written off; (d) when was this exemption first allowed and why; (e) why are corporations allowed this exemption and not individuals; (f) how many companies have made use of this exemption since its introduction, on an annual basis; (g) what is the annual cost of such exemptions on the federal treasury since its introduction; (h) if this exemption were not in place, how much would the federal treasury make in added revenues; and (i) which sectors of the economy most use this exemption?

With regard to automatic teller machine (ATM) fees: (a) what is the government’s current policy; (b) is it based on the advice from the Canada Revenue Agency; (c) does the government intend to legislate on limits on ATM fees, and, if so, when and, if not, why; (d) what is the government’s position with respect to eliminating ATM fees; (e) what studies and evaluations about ATM fees have been undertaken, requested or commissioned by the government over the last five years; (f) if any, what individuals, what department, or what organization undertook these studies, what were the cost of these studies, and what are their findings and recommendations; (g) what is the government’s estimate of the annual costs Canadians pay in ATM fees; (h) what is the government’s estimate in the annual profits earned by financial institutions in Canada from ATM fees; and (i) what is the source of both estimates?

With regard to services provided to the Prime Minister’s Office: (a) by Ms. Michelle Muntean, (i) how much is Ms. Muntean being paid on an hourly and annual basis, (ii) what are the terms of her employment, (iii) what is her official title, (iv) in terms of her employment supervisor, to whom does she report, (v) from which departmental budget is she paid, (vi) what are the details of the expenses submitted by Ms. Muntean, or on her behalf, from January 26, 2006 to April 19, 2007, including the dates for which the expenses were incurred, the breakdown of the figures according to month, and, if applicable, the service provided, and (b) what other contracts, in which services of a similar nature are provided, have been approved by the Prime Minister, or his staff, since January 26, 2006 and, if contracts to individuals were approved, (i) how much were they being paid on an hourly and annual basis, (ii) what are the terms of their employments, (iii) what are their official titles, (iv) in terms of their employment supervisors, to whom do they report, (v) from which departmental budget are they paid, (vi) what are the details of the expenses submitted by them, or on their behalf, from January 26, 2006 to April 19, 2007, including the dates for which the expenses were incurred, the breakdown of the figures according to month, and, if applicable, the service provided?

With respect to the sale in Canada of tobacco products on which excise and sales taxes have not been fully paid since February 6, 2006, has the government: (a) developed estimates of the quantities of untaxed tobacco products sold in each province and in each month and, if so, what were those estimates by provinces for each month; (b) considered implementing policies and measures to (i) revoke the federal tobacco manufacturer licence if the manufacturer is operating illegally, including if the manufacturer does not comply with provincial legislation, (ii) prohibit the supply of raw materials such as raw leaf tobacco, cigarette filters and paper and electricity to unlicensed tobacco manufacturers, (iii) increase the minimum bond for all tobacco manufacturers to at least $2 million and make such bonds forfeitable if a manufacturer is non-compliant with the law, (iv) improve tobacco package tax marking systems, including a full tracking and tracing system, (v) ensure that provincial tobacco tax is collected on native produced product on which federal tax is collected, (vi) combine the current federal GST and excise tax charged on tobacco products with a single higher excise tax rate, (vii) persuade the American government to shut down the illegal tobacco manufacturing facilities on the New York State side of Akwesasne reserve, (viii) initiate government-to-government negotiations with First Nations governments to control smuggling and invite First Nations governments to implement the effective tobacco control measures included in the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control; and, if so, what were the results or actions taken in each case and, if not, what was the rationale for not doing so?

With respect to its Policy on Responsible Investing adopted in October 2005, has the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board engaged in industry dialogue, proxy voting, shareholder motions, or direct engagement with (i) British American Tobacco, (ii) Altria, (iii) Rothmans, (iv) Japan Tobacco, (v) Ivanhoe Mines, (iv) Wal-mart, (v) Lockheed Martin, (vi) Exxon, (vii) Molson Coors, (viii) Nestle; and, if so, what were the results in each case?

With respect to programs and spending administered by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) within the riding of Winnipeg North: (a) what was the amount spent in 2006; (b) what is the projected budget for 2007; (c) how many CMHC-funded housing units for singles and families currently exist; and (d) how many CMHC-funded housing units for singles and families are planned for the remainder of 2006 and 2007?

With regard to unpaid taxes on corporate profits transferred to foreign jurisdictions with lower rates of taxation: (a) how many investigations are currently active; (b) what is the current estimated value of recoverable taxes; (c) what is the current cost per day to the government of monitoring and pursuing the full recovery of these taxes; and (d) what is the total amount of tax recovered from corporations in this regard in each of the past five fiscal years?