These comments are direct quotations from the Hansard
documents.
More Funding Requested
Mrs. Cheryl Gallant
(Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, Canadian Alliance): Mr. Speaker, the
Auditor General in her report found that the Canadian firearms program was
a major crown project and that the Treasury Board reporting requirements
for major crown projects were not followed. Now the minister wants $172
million more in funding for a program that continues to keep Parliament in
the dark on its costs.
Why were the reporting requirements for major crown corporations not
followed in the case of the $1 billion Canadian firearms program?
[Translation]
Hon. Lucienne Robillard (President of the Treasury Board, Lib.):
Mr. Speaker, I have already told the House that according to department
officials, the program was never officially designated as such. If that
were the case, a decision would have to be made by the Treasury Board.
However, it was never officially designated as a major crown project.
That said, I believe that the Department of Justice and the Treasury Board
Secretariat agree that more information should be reported to Parliament.
[English]
Mrs. Cheryl Gallant (Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, Canadian
Alliance): Mr. Speaker, just being told to bite the billion dollar
bullet is not good enough for Canadians.
Some hon. members: Oh, oh.
The Speaker: I hear hon. members saying they cannot hear. I am not
surprised; I cannot. The hon. member for Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke
has the floor and we will want to hear her question.
Mrs. Cheryl Gallant (Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, Canadian
Alliance): Mr. Speaker, since I am unable to get a satisfactory answer
from the minister, I will ask the chair of the public accounts committee
what the committee is doing to ensure that Parliament is being properly
informed on the management of this program.
Mr. John Williams (St. Albert, Canadian Alliance): Mr. Speaker, I
am pleased to advise that the President of the Treasury Board will be at
the committee this very afternoon. We fully expect that we are going to
get much better answers than we just had from her right now.
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