Discussion · Government Orders
Claude DeBellefeuille Bloc Québécois
“If this new agency becomes a Crown corporation, the ombudsman will not be able to investigate complaints from small businesses. This is not transparent. I want my colleague to support a change to the bill that lets the ombudsman oversee Crown corporations.”
“Mr. Speaker, I commend my colleague on her speech. I have a specific question for her. The thing I take issue with in this bill is that if the agency becomes a Crown corporation, the procurement ombud will no longer have the power to intervene. The ombud’s jurisdiction does not extend to Crown corporations. This means that if a small business wishes to file a complaint, it may not be heard because the ombud’s jurisdiction does not cover Crown corporations. Does my colleague not think that this shows a lack of transparency? Knowing my colleague, it seems to me that she would support an amendment to the bill that would extend the procurement ombud’s jurisdiction to include Crown corporations.”
Official Hansard
Mr. Speaker, I commend my colleague on her speech. I have a specific question for her. The thing I take issue with in this bill is that if the agency becomes a Crown corporation, the procurement ombud will no longer have the power to intervene. The ombud’s jurisdiction does not extend to Crown corporations. This means that if a small business wishes to file a complaint, it may not be heard because the ombud’s jurisdiction does not cover Crown corporations. Does my colleague not think that this shows a lack of transparency? Knowing my colleague, it seems to me that she would support an amendment to the bill that would extend the procurement ombud’s jurisdiction to include Crown corporations.