Senator Gold: I will make inquiries and report back in due course.

Senator Gold: I will certainly do so. Thank you.

Senator Loffreda: Thank you for that response, Senator Gold. I’m relieved to hear that the money is starting to flow into the departments and that problems are starting to be solved.

Despite encouraging unemployment numbers in recent months, I know that many employers are still having difficulty hiring people. It’s a huge problem. Word on the street is that businesses are not being consulted and asked what type of skilled workers they need.

I know the minister will unveil a new immigration plan this month. Can you assure us that the government will consult widely with the business community and experts, and that it will consider realigning its immigration priorities and policies to ensure that we attract the talent our economy actually needs?

Senator Gold: Thank you, colleague, for the question. I have made inquiries with the government, but I have not yet received an answer. When I hear back from the government, I will report in a timely fashion.

Senator Gold: I will ask the government what is available and appropriate to share, but that is all I can say right now without asking the government.

Senator Gold: Thank you. I will certainly pass that on to the government.

Senator Gold: Yes.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): I thank the honourable senator for his question and for highlighting the importance of our procurement program to better protect Canada and Canadians.

I will make inquiries with the government about a specific date and get back to you with an answer as soon as possible.

Senator Gold: Again, thank you for your question. The government is doing everything it can to save lives, and there is no attempt to put obstacles in the way. Circumstances were and remain difficult and challenging. The government is committed to doing everything it can, alone and with its allies, to address this significant, important challenge.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): I thank the honourable senator for the question.

LGBTQ2+ organizations are essential in Canada’s communities and are a lifeline for Canadians. They need our support to keep their doors open and to continue to develop. That is why the funding for the LGBTQ2 Community Capacity Fund is being extended for another year. This funding will enable organizations to build stronger infrastructure to advance LGBTQ2+ equality across Canada.

I’m sorry to say I don’t have any details on how the eligibility criteria for the fund are assessed. I will find out from the government and get back to you as soon as possible.

Senator Gold: Thank you for your question, senator.

The government recognizes that organizations across the country urgently need support to provide vital community resources. The government intends to uphold its commitments.

I would add that, in the past, I have had a great deal of experience and involvement with not-for-profit organizations. I saw that stable and predictable funding is important. That said, I must point out that the government invested $7.1 million in the 2021 budget to support the work of the LGBTQ2+ Secretariat and $15 million for projects in these communities.

As for the funding, I will endeavour to follow up on the previous question.

[English]

Senator Gold: Thank you for your question. I’m sorry that my answers are not satisfactory to you.

The fact remains that the government is in ongoing consultations and discussions with its scientific advisers and others. Science is not a monolithic answer. This is not Grade 3 arithmetic. There is a diversity of views within the scientific community. Science, one might say, is more of an art than a science.

That said, the government remains committed to making the appropriate policy choices based upon the best scientific advice that it receives and will announce whatever changes, if any, in due course when appropriate.

[Translation]

Senator Gold: Thank you. I will add those questions to the others.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you, senator, for raising this important issue.

The government continues to shift resources in this area to focus on priorities, to increase digitization of applications, to streamline its processes and resume in-person operations while, of course, respecting public health and safety guidelines.

Furthermore, I’m advised that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has already hired approximately 500 new processing staff, are digitizing applications and reallocating work amongst their offices around the world.

With regard to your question on spending of the allocated funds under the Fall Economic Statement, I have been advised that an outline for the funds has been released. Unfortunately, I don’t have an itemized list of the expenditures. I shall, however, inquire with the government and report back to the chamber with an answer.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for your question and for underlining the situation in Myanmar.

Canada, as you know, condemns the convictions and other abuses, and the coup d’état particularly, in Myanmar. With regard to the specific question, I’m not aware of a decision that has been made with regard to a resolution at the United Nations. I will certainly make inquiries, and if an answer is forthcoming, I will be glad to share it in the chamber.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Well, senator, thank you for your question and for underlining the ongoing challenges and problems that are facing those in Afghanistan.

With respect, the government is not playing political games. It is dealing with it as best it can. The government has been monitoring the situation closely. Canadian Armed Forces personnel were present in Afghanistan from early 2021 to monitor the situation on the ground. Canada was part of an air bridge with allies that saved as many people as it could throughout the difficult circumstances. The Armed Forces worked around the clock to evacuate as many people as possible for so long as conditions permitted, saving thousands of people under extraordinarily difficult circumstances.

We did not evacuate as many people as we would have liked to in August. The government is committed to exercising all of its available options to evacuate Canadians and our Afghan allies via land or air. I have finally been advised that the Minister of Foreign Affairs is in close contact with our allies and other countries in the region to help get as many people out as possible.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): I thank the honourable senator for her question. The answer is yes.

[English]

I am happy to report that I have indeed sought answers and clarifications in response to several questions posed by honourable senators yesterday. With your indulgence, I will provide these as well as a short recap of the essential facts.

As you know, in 1880, Canada and the Canadian Pacific Railway company reached an agreement that included a provision known as clause 16, which exempted CPR’s mainline from certain federal, provincial and municipal taxes. It is important, honourable senators, to note that this exemption only applies to that line and not to the totality of CPR’s enterprise. The exemption was then incorporated by reference in section 24 of The Saskatchewan Act, as well as into the statutes creating Alberta and the statutes extending Manitoba’s borders.

To better answer the question posed by Senator Simons yesterday, the clause 16 exemption also exists in Manitoba and Alberta, but they are not at issue today. To be more precise as it relates to Senator Simons’s questions on outreach by those provinces, I’m not aware of recent overtures made by the governments of Alberta and Manitoba to the federal government of late. However, it is possible, in the long history of this issue, that there may have been some in the past. At this stage, what I can say is that the federal government would, of course, be willing to engage with either province should they wish to pursue a similar change through their own parliamentary procedures.

In 1966, the federal government reached an agreement with CPR. Under the 1966 agreement, CPR would forego exemptions in the Prairie provinces and support constitutional amendments to that effect. However, the Constitution was not amended to reflect this. As you will know, the Constitution had not, at that time, been repatriated, and the question of how to amend the Constitution was far less clear — or easy, more accurately — than it is today.

To answer Senator Dalphond’s question, the 1966 agreement is, in fact, written. It is in the public domain. It is a letter from Mr. Sinclair, which was introduced and read into Hansard on September 8, 1966.

Senator Ringuette asked about the exemption as it relates to federal taxes. By virtue of section 241 of the Income Tax Act, I can’t disclose specific federal taxpayer information. However, having said that, I can confirm that CPR is not legally exempt from federal tax, as confirmed by the Federal Court last fall, and that CPR has generally paid federal taxes, including income tax.

As to the existing litigation and which governments are involved, in answer to Senators Dalphond and Dupuis, I can specify the following. First, separate claims were brought by CPR against the federal government and the Government of Saskatchewan. These claims are distinct and are before different courts. Second, CPR filed a claim in the Federal Court against Canada, asserting an exemption from federal tax, claiming federal taxes paid and seeking a declaration that would preclude the Crown from collecting federal taxes going forward. The claim was made on constitutional, statutory and contractual grounds.

Last fall, the Federal Court decided that CPR is not exempt from federal taxes. CPR has appealed that decision to the Federal Court of Appeal. The Federal Court claim is not directed at Saskatchewan. The constitutional amendment we are contemplating does not engage the Federal Court claim.

CPR, as I mentioned, has appealed that decision to the Federal Court of Appeal, but it should be noted that it is no longer making its claim on constitutional grounds. As it pertains to the federal government, clause 16 was never constitutionalized.

Further, in 2008, CPR filed a separate claim against Saskatchewan before the Saskatchewan courts, asserting the clause 16 exemption, as it relates to provincial tax, claiming provincial taxes paid and seeking a declaration that would preclude Saskatchewan from collecting provincial taxes going forward. That case is ongoing, and final arguments have been scheduled for May 2022. It is in the Saskatchewan case that CPR is claiming over $340 million from the people of Saskatchewan for taxes it has paid over the years — $340 million. Obviously, senators, $340 million to a population of 1.2 million people is quite substantial, to say the least.

CPR is making that claim based upon the vestigial clause that we’re being urged by all Saskatchewan legislators — all of them — and all members in the other place to remove from The Saskatchewan Act and the Constitution.

In short, the constitutional amendment that we are considering today deals only with the Province of Saskatchewan and it does not involve CPR’s ongoing claim against the federal Crown before the federal courts.

Finally, it should be noted that similar separate claims have been made against Manitoba and Alberta. However, these proceedings have been halted until a final decision is rendered in the Saskatchewan case.

With this additional information and the additional perspectives, we will be hearing soon from the seconder of this motion, Senator Cotter, and I hope we can move ahead swiftly. This is a clear opportunity for us in the upper chamber to stand up for a region of our country in a spirit of cooperative federalism. Colleagues, let us join the unanimous voice of the other place and respond positively to the request made by the elected representatives of the “land of living skies.”

Senator Gold: I thank the honourable senator for the question. I will respond in two ways. First, with respect to the 1880 contract, the details are found in several places. I will try to find the text and make it available to senators.

However, it should be noted that in 1880, there was no federal tax. At the time, the taxation system we know today did not exist. At the turn of the 20th century, the Government of Canada introduced several taxes in a wartime context, and CPR paid those taxes. That is why, notwithstanding the wording of clause 16 of the contract, every stakeholder has always understood that the main issue of the situation that concerns us and that concerns Saskatchewan has to do only with provincial taxes.