Questions and responses 42nd Parliament, 1st session December 3, 2015, to September 11, 2019

With regard to the hiring of the current Chief of Staff to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food: (a) what are the details of any information which has been created or exchanged between the Department and the Minister’s office detailing the interim process designed to avoid a real or perceived conflict of interest; (b) since its implementation, has the interim process prevented a real or perceived conflict of interest, and, if so, in what particular cases; and (c) if there has been a determination, what action has the Department or Minister’s office taken in response to instructions from the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner?

With regard to the federal public service and the Canada School of Public Service’s Indigenous Learning Series: (a) how many employees of the public service are there, as of May 6, 2019; (b) is participation in the Indigenous Learning Series mandatory for public service employees, broken down by department; (c) are new employees of the public service, broken down by department, expected to complete any part of the Indigenous Learning Series as part of their on-boarding; (d) how many employees of the public service have access to the available learning products of the Indigenous Learning Series; (e) are public service employees, both new and experienced, given time to complete training through the Indigenous Learning Series during contracted working hours; and (f) what number, by unit and percentage, of public service employees have completed training in the dedicated Indigenous Learning Series section of GCcampus?

With regard to the National Housing Co-Investment Fund: (a) what are the details of all funding recipients from the Fund since January 1, 2019, including (i) name of recipient, (ii) amount of federal contribution, (iii) date, (iv) description of project, (v) location; (b) what specific standards, for (i) accessibility, (ii) energy efficiency, are required of the recipients in (a); (c) did any of the recipients in (a) fail to meet the accessibility or energy efficiency standards and, if so, what are the details, including (i) name of recipient, (ii) which standards they failed to meet, (iii) what specific measures, if any, are in place to ensure that recipients meet the standards, (iv) whether a waiver issued to the recipient and, if so, by whom?

With regard to the Aviation Sector Analysis commissioned by Transport Canada to KPMG in 2016, completed in spring 2019, and provided to the Minister of Transport: (a) what are the detailed findings of the report; (b) what is the date that the full report will be released; and (c) why is there a delay in the report being released to the public?

With regard to the television advertising being done by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) during the 2019 NFL Playoffs: (a) what was the total amount spent by the CPPIB during the 2019 NFL Playoffs; (b) what are the details, including the total amount budgeted for the advertising campaign from which the expenditures in (a) were drawn; (c) why did the CPPIB advertise during the NFL Playoffs; and (d) does the government consider this advertisement to be a prudent use of taxpayers money?

With regard to the recommendations of the Cohen Commission on restoring salmon stocks in the Fraser River, for each recommendation that falls under the responsibility of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans: (a) what recommendations have been implemented in whole or in part; (b) of the recommendations identified in (a), what action was taken to implement the recommendation; (c) of the recommendations identified in (a), what date was the recommendation implemented; (d) when will the remaining recommendations of the Cohen Commission, in whole or in part, be implemented; and (e) what recommendations, if any, does the Department not intend to implement, and why?

With regard to the Columbia River Treaty (CRT): (a) who is expected to lead the Canadian delegation for the CRT renegotiations; (b) what steps has the government taken to appoint a negotiator to renegotiate for the CRT; (c) what steps has the government undergone to date to facilitate a renegotiation of the CRT or strengthen its bargaining position; (d) has the government identified the required scope of a renegotiation of the CRT; (e) how many briefings were made available to Canadian ministers and what were the titles and dates of these briefings; (f) what kind of funding has been allocated to fill in knowledge gaps in advance of renegotiation, whether in the form of studies, reports, consultations, or otherwise; (g) is the International Joint Commission expected to provide advice to negotiators; (h) does the government plan to respond to the letter sent to the Minister of Foreign Affairs on March 18, 2016, by some individuals from British Columbia and titled ‘Re: Columbia River Treaty Renegotiations’ and, if so, when; (i) has any analysis or study been done to see if Environment and Climate Change Canada has the necessary resources to deal effectively with this issue; and (j) has any funding been set aside specifically for Environment and Climate Change Canada to deal with this issue, and if so, how much?

With regard to every meeting between department-specific Treasury Board analysts and Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, Infrastructure Canada, Employment and Social Development Canada, and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada from October 19, 2015, to present: (i) what was the date, (ii) what topics were discussed during the meeting, (iii) which individuals were present, (iv) were the results reported to senior staff (Director General or higher)?

With regard to Operation IMPACT and the Canadian Armed Forces’ (CAF) support for the international coalition against ISIS: (a) who was consulted in the government’s decision to change Canada’s contribution; (b) how many Canadian troops are currently deployed, broken down by (i) location, (ii) occupation; (c) how many groups of Canadian troops, including the group size, have been deployed on or since February 8, 2016; (d) what has been the additional cost incurred as a result of withdrawing Canada’s CF-18s from theatre; (e) what is the planned cost for increasing the number of personnel on the ground; (f) have any changes been made to the force protection measures since February 8, 2016; (g) were the rules of engagement changed on or since February 8, 2016; and (h) are the support crews for the Royal Canadian Air Force’s contribution of one CC-150 Polaris, up to two CC-140 Aurora, and three CH-146 Griffon helicopters included in the total number of CAF members deployed?

With regard to contracts under $10 000 granted by Veterans Affairs Canada since January 1, 2016: what are the (i) vendors' names, (ii) contracts' reference and file numbers, (iii) dates of the contracts, (iv) descriptions of the services provided, (v) delivery dates, (vi) original contracts' values, (vii) final contracts' values if different from the original contracts' values?

With regard to contracts under $10 000 granted by Natural Resources Canada since January 1, 2016: what are the (i) vendors' names, (ii) contracts' reference and file numbers, (iii) dates of the contracts, (iv) descriptions of the services provided, (v) delivery dates, (vi) original contracts' values, (vii) final contracts' values if different from the original contracts' values?

With regard to all contracts awarded by the government since November 4, 2015, broken down by department or agency: (a) how many contracts have been awarded to a foreign firm, individual, business, or other entity with a mailing address outside of Canada; (b) for each contract in (a), what is the (i) name of vendor, (ii) date of contract, (iii) summary or description of goods or services provided, (iv) file or tracking number; and (c) for each contract in (a), was the contract awarded competitively or sole-sourced?

With regard to the legislative changes made by Bill C-31, which received royal assent on June 28, 2012, and all cessations of refugee protection since that time: (a) what level of funding has been allocated to Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to carry out cessation applications, broken down by (i) total, (ii) year; (b) what is the target for number of cessation applications to be carried out on an annual basis; (c) how many individuals have had cessation applications brought against them, broken down by (i) total, (ii) year; (d) from what stream of refugee program did the individuals with cessation applications brought against them arrive in Canada; (e) how many cases are currently (i) before the courts, (ii) pending; (f) how many completed cases have resulted in deportation; (g) how many cases involve evidence collected prior to the passing of Bill C-31; (h) what is the cost incurred by the government to litigate these cases; (i) how many full-time equivalents are assigned to handle cessation cases, broken down by year since Bill C-31 was passed; (j) how long is the average cessation case before the courts; (k) what is the country of origin of individuals that have cessation brought against them; (l) in how many cases has the Minister intervened to stop proceedings, broken by (i) total, (ii) year; (m) where did the individuals who had cessation brought against them reside, broken down by (i) province, (ii) city; (n) how long did the individuals who had cessation brought against them reside in Canada; (o) at the time a cessation case is brought against someone, how many of the individuals (i) are married, (ii) were employed at the time cessation was brought against them, (iii) have children, (iv) have children born in Canada; (p) how is it determined that a cessation application would be undertaken; and (q) how many cessation cases are flagged when the individual(s) apply for citizenship?

With regard to Northern Iraq and Canada’s commitment to address the Syrian refugee crisis: (a) what were the staffing levels for processing claimants, broken down by month from January 2012 to present; (b) how many individuals were processed, broken down by month from January 2012 to present; (c) if not processed in Northern Iraq, where are applications being sent, broken down by month from January 2012 to present; (d) what is the average processing time for applications in the region; (e) what is the average processing time for applications that are sent out of the region for processing; (f) what is the acceptance rate for applications originating from this region; (g) how many applications have originated from this region; (h) what was the cost incurred to the government for staffing related to refugee claimants from this area, broken down by (i) month, (ii) year; (i) what is the anticipated expenditure to send staff back to Northern Iraq, in total and broken down by month; (j) what is the anticipated length of time government staff will be sent back to the region; (k) how many cases are expected to be processed, broken down by (i) individual, (ii) family, (iii) percentage of total cases originating in the region; (l) what discussions occurred regarding the use of (i) the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees staff, (ii) the International Organization for Migration staff, to handle the processing of these cases instead of Canadian staff; (m) what other planned actions are there from government to process Northern Iraq refugee applications; and (n) for each of the actions listed in (m), what is their timeline?

With regard to the Syrian refugee resettlement efforts: (a) how much money has the government received in private donations and private sponsor funds since November 4, 2015, broken down by (i) date, (ii) total, (iii) description, (iv) location, (v) amount, (vi) spent, (vii) unspent; (b) does the government have any plans to spend the remaining money received from private donations or sponsorships since November 4, 2015, and, if so, what are they; (c) what are the specific dates, rationale, and details relating to the decision made to use hotels instead of Canadian Armed Forces bases to house Syrian refugees on a temporary basis; (d) what are the details of how the government notified settlement organizations of the decision to house Syrian refugees in hotels instead of Canadian Armed Forces Bases, including (i) individuals or organizations notified, (ii) method of notification, (iii) location of notification; (e) when did the government make the decision to change the initial 25 000 target for Syrian refugee arrivals in Canada to include privately sponsored refugees; (f) when did the government consult and report on Syrian refugee resettlement; (g) what topics were covered during internal government consultation on Syrian refugees, broken down by date; (h) what were the titles and topics covered in internal government reports on refugee resettlement, broken down by date; (i) what mechanisms exist to measure the application acceptance rate and resettlement efforts of identified vulnerable refugee groups; (j) in which immigration streams does the government measure identified vulnerable refugee groups; (k) from which countries does the government measure identified vulnerable refugee groups; (l) what vulnerable refugee groups has the government identified in the context of the Syrian refugee crisis; (m) of the first 25 000 Syrian refugees the government broken to Canada since November 4, 2015, when, broken down by month, were applications processed and when did these refugees arrive in Canada; (n) how many applications were approved before November 4, 2015; (o) when, where and which departments apart from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada contributed resources towards the Syrian refugee initiative, and what was the monetary value of those contributions; (p) from November 4, 2015, to present, how many Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) claims have been made, broken down by (i) month, (ii) nature of claim, (iii) total; (q) what has been the cost associated with the IFHP regarding Syrian refugee claims, broken down by (i) month, (ii) total; (r) how many social housing units have been used for Syrian refugee resettlement (i) province and city, (ii) month, (iii) temporary residence, (iv) permanent residence; and (s) how many Syrian refugees have been given temporary resident status, broken down by (i) month, (ii) total?

With regard to contracts under $10,000 granted by Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency since January 1, 2016: what are the (i) vendors' names, (ii) contracts' reference and file numbers, (iii) dates of the contracts, (iv) descriptions of the services provided, (v) delivery dates, (vi) original contracts' values, (vii) final contracts' values if different from the original contracts' values?

With regard to all government funding provided through Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency: (a) which grant allocations, programs, projects, and all other means of dispersing government funds, have been cancelled since November 4, 2015; (b) what was the rationale provided for the cancellation of each item identified in (a); (c) what amount of funding had been dispensed to each item identified in (a) at the time of cancellation, broken down by year; (d) what amount of funding had been allocated to each item identified in (a) at the time of cancellation, broken down by year; (e) what are the details of any departmental reviews of each item identified in (a) when they were originally proposed, including (i) the grade or score with which they were assessed, if any exist, (ii) the viability of the programs as it was originally determined; (f) what are the details of any and all department performance reviews of each item identified in (a) once they were underway, including (i) annual reviews, (ii) quarterly reviews, (iii) reviews undertaken at the request of the Minister; (g) which grant allocations, programs, projects, and all other means of dispersing government funds have been approved since November 4, 2015; (h) what consultations took place in relation to each item identified in (g) prior to their approval; (i) what are the details of any departmental reviews of each item identified in (g); (j) what is the grade and score with which the reviews in (h) were assessed, if any exist, and was is the viability of these programs as it was originally determined; (k) what is the stated section of Budget 2016 under which each item identified in (g) fall, if any are applicable; and (l) what is the the departmental mandate under which each of the items identified in (g) fall?

With regard to contracts under $10 000 granted by Fisheries and Oceans Canada since January 1, 2016: what are the (i) vendors' names, (ii) contracts' reference and file numbers, (iii) dates of the contracts, (iv) descriptions of the services provided, (v) delivery dates, (vi) original contracts' values, (vii) final contracts' values, if different from the original contracts' values?

With regard to the Kathryn Spirit, a derelict vessel in Beauharnois, Quebec: (a) what amounts have been spent per year by the government since 2011 for maintenance, related costs, abortive towing attempts or any other costs related to this vessel; (b) how many employees, broken down by department, have worked on this file since 2011, broken down by year; (c) what were the costs of the stabilization work during the summer of 2016, in general and including costs to deploy personnel, ground, naval and air assets of the various departments; (d) how many individuals, broken down by department, were deployed when the vessel listed heavily this summer and for how long; (e) what were the ground, air and naval assets used during this incident; and (f) what is the estimated reaction time between the moment a leak is detected near the Kathryn Spirit, the arrival of Coast Guard personnel and the deployment of all protection measures?

With regard to vehicles purchased, broken down by department, agency, crown corporation, or other government entity, since November 4, 2015: (a) how many vehicles have been purchased, broken down by make, including, (i) Porsche, (ii) Lexus, (iii) Mercedes, (iv) Tesla, (v) BMW, (vi) Lamborghini, (vii) Ferrari; (b) what was the date and purchase price of each of the vehicles identified in (a); (c) what was the year and model of each of the vehicles identified in (a); (d) were the vehicles identified in (a) new or used when purchased; (e) were there any vehicles purchased for a price in excess of $50 000, or equivalent, not covered by parts (a)(i) through (a)(vii); and (f) if the response to (e) is affirmative, what is the make, model, purchase price, and date of purchase of each vehicle?