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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 326

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 6, 2024 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 326 - Jun/6/24
Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)
  • Jun/6/24 1:44:59 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is important for us to recognize that the SDTC has been around for over 20 years, and it is an arm's-length foundation. When the issue became live, we had a government that proactively took actions that ultimately, I would suggest, even led to the Auditor General's report. We have taken tangible actions, such as the freezing of new funding and now replacing the board. I would like to think that the Conservative Party would in fact recognize, at the very least, that as an arm's-length foundation, we have even taken tangible actions to date so we can ensure that sustainable development and technology in Canada continues to grow and continue to receive funds. Could the hon. member indicate whether he supports the change in governance to the NRC?
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Context: House Hansard - 326 - Jun/6/24
Mr. Don Davies (Vancouver Kingsway, NDP)
  • Jun/6/24 3:54:26 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the hon. member said there are some issues at Sustainable Development Technology Canada. Let us go over the basics. Annette Verschuren, the former board chair, as well as being CEO of a Toronto-based energy storage firm called NRStor Inc., participated in approving grants totalling $217,000 to her own company. She refused to recuse herself. SDTC awarded funding to projects that were ineligible. It did not follow conflict of interest policies for directors 88 times. The legal requirements for the number of foundation members were never met; the board was required to have 15 members, but, by 2020, there were only two. Decisions were also made without quorum. These are not “some issues”. This is a board that is colossally compromised by corruption. Given facts such as these and more, would my hon. colleague really describe the situation at SDTC as one where there were “some issues”?
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