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House Hansard - 299

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 15, 2024 11:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 299 - Apr/15/24
Mr. Ryan Turnbull (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, Lib.)
  • Apr/15/24 7:55:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am happy to respond to the comments made by the member for Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes regarding Sustainable Development Technology Canada. We have taken the responsible and prudent actions necessary to investigate the claims that are being presented to us. These processes are well under way. The party opposite needs to understand that proper due diligence takes time and that the appropriate measures are in place to allow these processes to play out. ISED has temporarily frozen SDTC's funding and has appointed a legal agent to review the organization's HR practices. The minister has also accepted the resignation of the board chair. On the matter of a potential conflict of interest situation with the appointment of the former chair of SDTC's board of directors, the department was made aware of the situation prior to her appointment in 2019. Prior to the finalization of her appointment, Ms. Verschuren completed a conflict of interest review with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. A further review of conflict of interest practices is being conducted by the Auditor General. Innovation, Science and Economic Development is now in the process of finalizing the assessment of SDTC's response to the “Management Response and Action Plan” issued by the department to address the recommendations in the Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton report. This includes ensuring that there are appropriate oversight measures in place to provide for ongoing compliance monitoring. Funding will not be restored until the minister is fully satisfied that SDTC has fully implemented the necessary corrective measures. The facts matter. Our actions will continue to be informed by the proper due diligence. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada is prepared to take additional measures in response to any findings or recommendations that may result from the legal review of SDTC's human resource practices, from the audit by the Auditor General and from the Ethics Commissioner's investigation. SDTC is an organization that wants to get back to supporting Canadian innovators in the clean-tech sector, and this government is committed to supporting Canada's innovative clean-tech industries. This is a sector that is crucial to ensuring Canada and the world meet our 2030 and 2050 climate commitments, and I am confident we are on the right path with the implementation of the corrective measures, the review of SDTC's human resource management, the AG's audit and the Ethics Commissioner's investigation. I think the party opposite should allow the due process to take its course as we remain prepared to take the necessary actions.
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