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Adjournment Proceedings

An adjournment debate on a severance package paid to the former CEO of Canada Health Infoway after his firing following a $300-million PrescribeIT project failure. Dan Mazier of the Conservatives asked repeatedly whether an official connected to the Health Minister who sits on the agency’s board voted to approve the payout, and pressed for a yes-or-no answer. Ryan Turnbull of the Liberals responded that an independent review of Canada Health Infoway is underway covering its spending, governance, leadership and compensation, and that the Auditor General has agreed that review is sufficient and political involvement is not needed. The exchange returned to the same question and answer without further development.Written by AI from the debate. Updated .

Official text

4 statements

Dan Mazier

Conservative
“A former health agency CEO got a huge payout after being fired over a 300-million-dollar failure. The health minister has an official on that agency's board. I want to know if that official voted for the payout.”

  • A repeated line

    “The former CEO of Canada Health Infoway.”

    Said 3 times by 2 members since May 1.

    Every time it was said
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the former CEO of Canada Health Infoway, Michael Green, was fired after the Conservatives exposed his role in the $300-million PrescribeIT scandal. We have since obtained his termination letter. That termination letter granted Mr. Green a massive severance package that included a full year of salary and benefits, months of pension contributions, months of car allowance, vacation pay, more performance pay and an additional bonus after he was fired for the $300-million failure. The health minister’s very own official is on the board of Canada Health Infoway, so my question is simple: Did the health minister’s representative vote in favour of this massive severance package for PrescribeIT’s CEO, yes or no?

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Ryan Turnbull

Liberal
“We are already having independent experts review Canada Health Infoway. They are checking its spending, leadership pay, and how it is run. The Auditor General agreed that this review is enough, so the Conservatives should let it happen without political interference.”

  • Reply to a debate question

    Relevance 37 of 100

    None of this reply addressed the specific point raised or the topic under debate.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Riding Mountain for giving me a chance to reiterate the statement that the Minister of Health made on this topic in June. Since it was the last day before the House rose, he might have missed what she said, so I will repeat it now. She said: Canada Health Infoway (“Infoway”) was established in 2001 with a mandate to break down silos in our healthcare system, modernise health data infrastructure, and improve access, quality and productivity of care for all Canadians. While many Canadians have benefitted from Infoway’s work, important questions have been raised in recent months about accountability and value-for-money. To ensure Infoway is best positioned to fulfill its mandate effectively and efficiently while delivering value to Canadians, the Minister of Health has directed the launch of a multi-phase review. The review will include an independent, third-party audit, complemented by a comprehensive strategic review of the organisation’s governance structures and operations. Phase one will assess Infoway’s compliance with the terms and conditions of its contribution agreement, followed by a wider strategic review that includes but is not limited to examining the organisation’s funding model, program delivery, effectiveness, mandate, bylaws, corporate policies, governance framework, executive leadership and compensation practices, and reporting mechanisms. Stakeholder consultations will also be undertaken to provide insight on Infoway’s strengths, opportunities for improvement, and role within Canada’s health ecosystem. As our government works to break down silos in our healthcare system, this review will ensure that Infoway is adopting best practices and that all available steps are taken to build a modern, accountable, health data system that improves care for all Canadians. The review process will commence immediately and continue over the coming months. Upon completion, the Government of Canada will publish key findings and outline next steps. Is that enough? I will let the Auditor General respond to that, because just over a week after the minister made that statement, the Auditor General said, “We have been informed by Health Canada that they are planning a review of Canada Health Infoway. I am of the view that conducting a performance audit at this time would be duplicative and therefore of limited added value for Parliamentarians and Canadians.” Seeing as the member for Riding Mountain was a member of the health committee when it asked the Auditor General to look into the matter, I would hope that the Auditor General’s response is enough for the member. There are third party reviews of the program taking place right now. We should allow this important work to take place free of the kind of political interference that the Conservatives are calling for and are known for.

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Dan Mazier

Conservative

Linked statement

“The government did not answer my question. A health project failed after costing $300 million, and the boss who ran it got a large severance package. The health minister has an official on that board. I want a yes-or-no answer: did that official vote to give the boss that severance money?”

  • Question or comment in debate

    Relevance 47 of 100

    None of this question addressed the preceding speech or the topic under debate.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals did not answer my question. He was going on about an auditor trail. He did not answer my question. My question was about a severance package awarded to the CEO who oversaw the $300-million PrescribeIT failure. The health minister’s very own official is on Canada Health Infoway’s board. My question was simple: Did the health minister’s representative vote in favour of the massive severance package for the PrescribeIT CEO, yes or no?

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Ryan Turnbull

Liberal
“An independent review is already looking into the leadership, pay, and rules here. The Auditor General said this review is enough and that she does not need to do her own. We should wait for the results.”

  • Reply to a debate question

    Relevance 46 of 100

    None of this reply addressed the specific point raised or the topic under debate.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I mentioned that in the review taking place as we speak, there is a review of all the governance structures, the compensation packages, leadership, performance, etc. The Conservatives wanted the Auditor General to look into this matter. She has stated very clearly that she believes the measures announced by the minister are enough and that it would be duplicative for the Auditor General to do her own review. As the minister has said, the third party review and audit are under way. We look forward to seeing the results.

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