Question Period Notes
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In accordance with the Access to Information Act, the government proactively publishes the package of question period notes that were prepared by a government institution for the minister and that were in use on the last sitting day in June and December.
The question period notes may be partially or fully redacted in accordance with the legislation; for example, if the notes contain information related to national security or personal information. (Learn more about exemptions and exclusions.)
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On November 28, 2023, Canada entered into a government-to-government agreement with the United States (US) Government for the acquisition of up to 16 P-8A Poseidon aircraft for the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Fourteen multi-mission aircraft will be procured, with options for up to an additional two. The estimated value of this government-to-government agreement, which also includes associated equipment, training devices and initial sustainment, is $5.9 billion USD including contingency.
Notes:
- All questions related to capability and costs should be answered by the Minister of National Defence
- All questions related to industrial and technological benefits should be answered by the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development
The Online News Act (the Act) received Royal Assent on June 22, 2023, and will come into effect in its entirety no later than December 19, 2023. The Government is currently developing the regulatory framework to support the implementation of the Act. In August 2023, Meta began permanently ending the provision of news content on its platforms in Canada and Google had indicated it might do likewise if its concerns could not be addressed through regulation. On November 29, 2023, the Government announced that it had agreed with Google on a path forward, and that, as a result, Google will not be pulling news from its search engine in Canada.
Public Services and Procurement Canada is collaborating and communicating regularly with Transport Canada in order to move quickly on this file while ensuring a fair acquisition process for property owners. The Government of Canada acquired 124 parcels of land from 44 owners for the construction of the Lac-Mégantic railway bypass. These parcels were owned by the municipality of Lac-Mégantic as well as private owners located in Lac-Mégantic, Frontenac and Nantes.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is investigating allegations of misconduct involving contracting to procure software that would provide harassment support to employees of Canada Border Services Agency. Allegations involve misconduct by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officials and industry. The issue is also being examined by the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates (OGGO) as part of its ArriveCan contracts study.
Food insecurity
IRCC’s response to human rights violations in Iran and public policy
The Registrar of Ineligibility and Suspension has suspended Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. (Teva USA) from the award of contracts by the Government of Canada pursuant to its Integrity Regime’s Ineligibility and Suspension Policy.
An article published on November 27, 2023 reports the Bloc Québécois official languages spokesperson suggesting that the federal government has invested $2 billion to support English in Quebec since 1995, despite the decline of French in that province and the country.
What federal investments are being made to support the Early Childhood Educator (ECE) Workforce?
The Government has announced a new, temporary one-year measure that will provide up to four more weeks of Employment Insurance (EI) regular benefits to eligible seasonal claimants in 13 EI regions to mitigate the increased risk of an income gap between work seasons due to low unemployment rates combined with shorter than usual work seasons.