Questions and responses 40th Parliament, 2nd session January 26, 2009, to December 30, 2009

With respect to the Department of Finance, for all contracts under $10,000 signed between December 1, 2008 and October 19, 2009, what is the: (a) vendor name; (b) contract reference number; (c) contract date; (d) description of work; (e) delivery date; (f) original contract value; and (g) final contract value if different from the original?

With respect to the Treasury Board, for all contracts under $10,000 signed between January 1 and October 21, 2009, what is: (a) the vendor name; (b) the contract reference number; (c) the contract date; (d) the description of work, (e) the delivery date; (f) the original contract value; and (g) the final contract value if different from the original contract value?

With respect to contracts under $10,000 granted by the Department of Citizenship and Immigration since January 1, 2008, what are: (a) the names of the contractors; (b) the amounts of the contracts; (c) the dates of the contracts; (d) the dates of completion; and (e) the descriptions of the services provided?

With regards to Industry Canada’s use of contracts for each fiscal year, since 2004-2005: (a) what are the total number of contracts awarded, their value, contact persons and the names of those organizations that received contracts all broken down by both province and constituency, and whether the contracts are for goods or services; (b) in detail, what each contract was awarded for; (c) was the contract tendered or sole-sourced; (d) in the case of a sole-source contract was it approved by a minister and, if so, which minister approved it; and (e) in the case of a tendered contract, what are the number of tenders put forward and the length of the tender period?

With respect to sole-source contracting over the last five years undertaken by, or on behalf of, each department or Crown agency: (a) what was the total amount of such contracting, on an annual basis; (b) what was the amount and duration of each contract, (i) who so authorized the contracts, (ii) which contracts were amended, (iii) how were they amended, and what justification was given for amending each contract; (c) in each instance where the value of the contract exceeded $25,000, what was the business case for doing so; and (d) what audits were undertaken in relation to any sole-sourced contracts, (i) what was the date, title, authorship and cost of each audit, (ii) which ones raised concerns over the value for money taxpayer received, (iii) what concerns were raised and what recommendations were made, (iv) did any result in criminal charges and, if so, (v) which ones?

With respect to Canada Health Infoway, for all contracts under $10,000 signed between January 1, 2001 and October 21, 2009, what is: (a) the vendor name; (b) the contract reference number; (c) the contract date; (d) the description of work, (e) the delivery date; (f) the original contract value; and (g) the final contract value if different from the original contract value?

With respect to the Department of Human Resources and Skills Development, for all contracts under $10,000 signed between December 1, 2008 and October 19, 2009, what is: (a) the vendor name; (b) the contract reference number; (c) the contract date; (d) the description of work, (e) the delivery date; (f) the original contract value; and (g) the final contract value if different from the original contract value?

With regards to public-private partnerships (P3s or PFIs): (a) what is the government’s overall policy on their use; (b) how many government contracts since January 2006 have involved P3s, and for each project, what are the names of these projects, who are the partners, how much money did the federal government contribute, how much money did other levels of government contribute and how much money did each private partner contribute; (c) what problems in general have the government identified with the use of P3s; (d) what precautions have the government taken to ensure that P3s represent value for money for taxpayers; (e) what measures has the government taken to ensure that the terms and conditions of P3s are honoured by private sector participants; (f) were there any lessons learned exercises or evaluations conducted with respect to any particular P3 project and, if so, what were the results of these evaluations; (g) has the government conducted studies on the use of P3s in other countries and, if so, what were the results of these studies; (h) has the government invested in P3 projects in British Columbia; and (i) does the government have a minimum contribution or minimum percentage required from the private sector?

With respect to sole source contracts for goods and services issued by or on behalf of the Privy Council Office and the Prime Minister's Office only, for the last four years: (a) how many contracts have so been awarded; (b) who received the contracts, on what date and for what amount; (c) what good or service did they provide in return; (d) what was the duration of each contract; and (e) who was responsible for authorizing each contract?

With respect to military contracts of over $100 million awarded since January 2006 that include industrial and regional benefit (IRB) requirements, for each contract: (a) what is the name of the principal contractor; (b) what is the name of the Canadian company that concluded a partnership agreement with the principal contractor under the IRB Policy; (c) briefly, what is the project's description; (d) where will most of the project be carried out; (e) how long will the project take; and (f) what is the project’s IRB value in terms of the IRB Policy?

With regard to aquifers in Canada: (a) what percentage of Canada’s groundwater has been mapped by the government; (b) what percentage of Canada’s groundwater has been mapped by the provincial and territorial governments; (c) how much has the Canadian government spent, directly or indirectly, on groundwater mapping in each of the last ten years; (d) how much have each of the provinces and territories spent on groundwater in each of the last ten years; (e) is all federal groundwater mapping done by the Canadian Geological Survey, if not, to whom is third-party groundwater mapping contracted out; and (f) do provinces and territories share the data they collect on groundwater mapping with the federal government?

With regard to two government contracts or retainers awarded to Mike McCurry and Ari Fleischer: (a) what criteria did the government use in awarding these contracts or retainers; (b) what are the terms of each contract or retainer; (c) what is the value of each contract or retainer; (d) where will Mr. McCurry and Mr. Fleischer be travelling to; (e) what are the travel expenses and per diem rates for Mr. McCurry and Mr. Fleischer; and (f) was any document or record provided to a minister or MP regarding these two contracts and, if so, what are the details?

With respect to the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) for the last five years: (a) how many security incidents, by airport, were reported on a monthly basis; (b) what kind of security incidents were so reported; (c) how many incidents were serious enough to involve the police; (d) how many involved arrests; (e) how many weapons were confiscated by airport screeners, by airport, on a monthly basis; (f) what weapons were confiscated; (g) how many breaches of security perimeters under CATSA’s jurisdiction occurred, by airport, on a monthly basis; (h) which private security firms has CATSA engaged to provide screening services at airports; (i) what is the value and duration of each contract; (j) which contracts were awarded without a competitive tender, and why; (k) how many employees of private security firms have been charged in relation to security incidents; and (l) on what day and in what location did the incidents occur?

With respect to significant environmental incidents within federal jurisdiction in the last five years: (a) when and in what locations did each incident occur; (b) which incidents occurred in environmentally sensitive or protected areas; (c) what damage was caused; (d) which wildlife listed in the Species at Risk Registry were affected; (e) which departments were notified; (f) which department claimed lead jurisdiction in overseeing each case; (g) who evaluated the potential environmental damage; (h) which private sector entities were contracted to carry out such work; (i) were any contracts the subject of a non-competitive bid process and, if so, which ones and why; (j) what were the associated cleaning up costs of each incident; (k) who was so contracted; (l) were any contracts the subject of a non-competitive bid process and, if so, which ones and why; (m) what charges, if any, were laid in connection with each incident; (n) did any result in fines or prison terms and, if so, for whom and what sentence or fine did they receive; and (o) if no legal action was taken, why not?

With regards to Transport Canada’s Ecomobility program: (a) what are the total number of contracts awarded, their value, and the names of those organizations that received contracts all broken down by both province and constituency; and (b) what are the details of each contract that was awarded and whether the contract was tendered or sole-sourced?

With respect to government advertising campaigns for the last three fiscal years: (a) which departments or agencies were engaged in such campaigns; (b) what was the stated objectives and purpose of each; (c) when, at what cost, and for what length of time, did each run; (d) which private companies were involved in the conception, design, and production of the ads; (e) were any advertising contracts sole-sourced and, if so, which ones and why; (f) what was the target audience of each campaign; (g) in which mediums, publications and television markets did they appear; (h) what analysis was done on the effectiveness of each campaign, who undertook the analysis and at what cost; and (i) which campaigns failed to meet the stated objectives of the campaign, and why?

With respect to contract number C1111-050673/001/PR and Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC): (a) when was this contract first awarded, by whom and to whom was it awarded; (b) in what amount was it first awarded; (c) for what product or service was it first awarded; (d) for what reasons was the contract amended six times between December 2006 and February 2009; (e) what amendments were made in each amendment; (f) was the contract competitively tendered following Glickman Fulleringer Executive Promotions’ withdrawal from the contract; (g) if it wasn’t amended, why wasn’t it amended; (h) was any penalty paid by Glickman Fulleringer for pulling out of the contract and, if so, what was the penalty, if the penalty was financial, in what amount was it and was the penalty paid; (i) on what date did Glickman Fulleringer advise the government of their intention to withdraw from the contract and what was the reasoning behind this decision; (j) on what date did 6768997 Canada Inc. assume control of the contract in question; (k) how was 6768997 Canada Inc. chosen by PWGSC; (l) who in PWGSC made the decision to award the contract to 6768997 Canada Inc.; (m) did any persons at 6768997 Canada Inc. formerly work at Glickman Fulleringer and, if so, whom and what role did the presence of this person play in the PWGSC decision to award the original contract to 6768997 Canada Inc.; and (n) what is the government’s position on awarding a contract for the production of maple leaf flag pins that are distributed by parliamentarians to an American-owned company that subsequently outsourced the job to China?

With respect to the purchase, either by Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) for departments, agencies and Crown corporations, or by the individual departments, agencies and Crown corporations, in the fiscal years 2007-2008, and 2008-2009, namely, (i) media and public relations training, (ii) public opinion research, (iii) promotional materials related to press conferences only, (iv) hairstylists and estheticians, (v) spas and sun tanning salons, (vi) sporting events, (vii) dry cleaning, (viii) taxis, (ix) retreats at resorts or conference centres: (a) by department, agency or Crown corporation, how many items or services in each category were purchased; (b) what was the total cost spent by either PWGSC or another department, agency or Crown corporation on each category; and (c) with respect to media training, what was the date and cost of each contract and who was the recipient of the training?

With respect to the procurement of temporary personnel services in the National Capital Region over the last five years: (a) (i) what are the total expenditures for such services, on an annual basis, (ii) on an annual basis, what amount is spent by each department or government agency; (b) (i) which companies received contracts to provide temporary personnel services, (ii) what is the combined annual total of all contracts awarded to each company, (iii) which companies received sole sourced contracts, on what dates, in what amounts, (iv) why were their contracts not competitively sourced; (c) (i) on an annual basis, how many people were hired by temporary employment agencies to work for the federal government and its agencies, (ii) on an annual basis and by department or agency, how many employees were hired; (d) (i) what is the average length of time an employee remains on contract, (ii) how many workers, in number and percentage of overall hires, begin on contract and are eventually offered full time positions within the federal civil service; and (e) (i) what is the business case for using temporary workers instead of permanent members of the civil service, (ii) what savings does the government make in salary, pension and benefits by using temporary workers rather than permanent workers, as a total amount and on an average per worker basis, (iii) what is the average hourly amount a temporary agency receives based on the hourly wage a temporary worker is paid for their labour?

With regards to Citizenship applications: (a) what is the processing time for applications broken down by Immigration office and provided for each calendar year since 2006; (b) what are the geographic areas those offices serve; (c) how many full-time, part-time and temporary staff are employed in each of these offices; (d) how many full-time, part-time and contract staff specifically handle citizenship applications; (e) what is the budget allocated to each of those offices for each fiscal year since 2005-2006; (f) how much of the budget is committed specifically for the handling of citizenship applications per fiscal year; and (g) what information was provided to the Minister on Citizenship processing times since 2006?