Thank you, Mr. Chair.

It's sad to hear what my NDP colleague is saying. We don't know why the NDP is always trying to prevent the truth from coming out in any way possible. It's quite clear that this is about the government's management during a pandemic and the awarding of contracts. Yes, awarding contracts is generally the responsibility of a department, but it was Health Canada that ordered these vaccines, and the Department of Health was responsible for managing that money. So there is a connection with the Standing Committee on Health in that regard.

In addition, we always have a habit in Canada of managing in a vacuum, and no one is ever held accountable. We always end up passing the buck somewhere else. Billions of dollars are being spent and it always ends in a wild goose chase. We have an opportunity here to shed light on these events. I believe that my NDP colleague should support the position of the Conservatives and the Bloc Québécois so that we can find out more about this issue. Public funds have disappeared. As my colleague Mr. Perkins mentioned, this is not necessarily a scandal, but a matter of management incompetence. That's why we want to know more clearly what happened with this contract and the reasons why things are being hidden from us.

Now, we have to know where we're going. We discussed the amendment proposed by our Liberal colleague and the NDP has spoken. I'm trying to keep track of where we're going. I personally believe that this issue is extremely important. It's urgent that we get to the truth. As I said, I come from Quebec City, and this happened in Quebec City. I can say publicly that, initially, we were very pleased that Medicago had facilities and was developing vaccines here. However, the first scandal happened. After the government spent $173 million, the Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corporation said it was all over and it was leaving. After that, we learned that another $150 million had been paid out, but we didn't get any more details. We found out by happenstance when looking through the Public Accounts of Canada.

I think we're at the stage where we need to shed light on this matter in order to find out what happened and to understand why the money was paid where it was paid and why it's not being reimbursed, like it was in Quebec. The Government of Quebec granted advances and loans and said that they would be 100% paid back. Why did the Government of Quebec manage the money sent to Medicago effectively and why is the money being reimbursed, whereas in Canada we can't go any further and they always find ways to dodge the question and never answer it?

Pierre Paul-Hus

$427,255.00