G/SCM/Q2/CAN/66  
 
29 March 2016  
(16-1770)  Page: 1/4  
Committee on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures  Original: English  
 
 SUBSIDIES 
REPLIES TO QUESTIONS1 POSED BY THE UNITED STATES REGARDING 
THE NEW AND FULL NOTIFICATION OF CANADA2 
The following communication, dated 29 March 2016, is being circulated at the request of the 
Delegation of Canada.  
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  Strategic Aerospace and Defence Initiative 
 
Question 1  
This program is one of several Canada noti fied as part of its Transfer Payments 
Programs (TPP). Canada's planning and pe rformance reporting for the TPP indicates 
that transfers were made during the repo rting period under the "Bombardier CSeries 
Program".
3 Could Canada please confirm whether payments were made under this TPP 
sub-program during the reporting period and if so, explain why they were not notified? 
 Reply: 
 As reported in the Public Accounts of Cana da, repayable contributions of $65,955,000 and 
$81,139,313 were disbursed to Bombardier under the Bombardier CSeries Program during 
FY 2012-13 and FY 2013-14. 
 Question 2 
 
Please indicate whether Bombardier received  any funding under the Strategic Aerospace 
and Defence Initiative TPP sub-program during  the reporting period that is not already 
covered by funding provided under the Bombardier CSeries Program.  
 
Reply: 
 
No payments were made to Bombardier during the reporting period under the Strategic Aerospace 
and Defence Initiative.  
Technology Demonstration Program 
 Question 3  
Public sources indicated that this program provides "non-repayable contributions in 
support of large-scale technology demonstrat ion projects in the aerospace, defence, 
space and security sectors".
4 Could Canada please conf irm whether payments were 
made under this TPP sub-program during the reporting period and if so, please explain 
                                               
1 G/SCM/Q2/CAN/65. 
2 G/SCM/N/284/CAN. 
3 See https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/017.nsf/eng/07481.html ; 
https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/017.nsf/eng/07481.html#SO2-prog-01 . 
4 See https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/ito-oti.nsf/eng/h_00837.html . G/SCM/Q2/CAN/66 
 
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  why they were not notified? Please also specify whether Bombardier received any 
funding under this program during the reporting period.  Reply: 
 No payments were made during the reporting period under this program.  
Automotive Partnership Canada 
 Question 4  
Public sources indicate that this Government of Canada in itiative provides support for 
R&D activities to benefit the Canadian auto motive industry. Funded projects include, 
inter alia , next generation e-vehicles, battery  technology, metal testing, and new 
transmission technology.
5 Could Canada please provide a full notification of this program 
or otherwise explain why this program does not meet the notification requirements?  
Reply: 
 
The Automotive Partnership Canada (APC) was a one-time initiative launched in 2009 to increase the innovative capabilities of Canada's automoti ve sector by supporting large scale collaborative 
R&D projects among industry, academia, and gove rnment laboratories. This initiative did not 
provide funding directly to companies as it only funded the activities of university or government lab research related to collaborations with the Canadian automotive industry. There was an 
expectation within the initiative that the industry partners would contribute their own resources for 
these collaborative R&D projects. The APC initiative is now closed and no longer accepting applications. 
Canadian Youth Business Foundation 
 Question 5  
In its last notification, Canada notified this program, indicating that it "will end 
31 March 2014". Please indicate whether any funds were disbursed under this program 
during the reporting period. Please also specif y whether this program did in fact expire 
by the date noted.
6 
 Reply: 
 The Canadian Youth Business Foundation has been renamed Futurpreneur Canada, which is program 1.22 in Canada's 2015 Subsidy notification.  
Transformative Technology Program 
 Question 6 
 
In its last notification, Canada notified this program, indicating that it was "set to expire on 31 March 2014". Please indicate whethe r any funds were disbursed under this 
program during the reporting period. Please  also specify whether this program did in 
fact expire by the date noted.
7 
 Reply: 
 Starting from FY 2012-2013, the Transformative Technology Program was no longer a stand-alone program and became a component of the Forest Innovation Program. As a result, no funding was 
disbursed under the Transformative Technology Program after FY 2011-2012.  
 Provincial Programs Not Reported 
                                               
5 See http://www.apc-pac.ca/ . 
6 G/SCM/N/253/CAN. 
7 G/SCM/N/253/CAN. G/SCM/Q2/CAN/66 
 
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Question 7   The United States appreciates Canada's effort s to improve its notification of provincial 
and territorial government subsidies. However,  we also note that public sources indicate 
that many programs are active. Notably, according to the WTO Secretariat's Report in Canada's 2015 Trade Policy Review, citing Canada Business Network, a government 
information service, there are about "755 su pport programmes providing assistance to 
businesses in the form of grants, loan guar antees, tax refunds and credits, and wage 
subsidies. Many are at the prov incial level and thus, restrict ed to recipients established 
in the province." The report further states that most of the programs are "specifically 
targeted to a particular sector or location and that many programmes offered were with 
respect to grants or contributions."
8 This stands in contrast to the 112 programs notified 
by Canada in 2013 (58 federal, 54 provinci al) and the 115 notified in 2015 (56 federal 
and 59 provincial). The United States again expresses its concern that Canada's current 
notification still does not notify such prog rams. Could Canada address why it has not 
notified programs that the Secretariat was able to identify? 
 
Reply: 
 Most of the programs providing assistance to businesses identified in Canada Business Network's 
database fall outside of the scope of the notifica tion requirements of Article 25 of the ASCM. For 
example, while many are specific to a province , they are also provided and administered by 
provincial authorities and are not considered regionally-specific under the Agreement on Subsidies 
and Countervailing Measures (ASCM). Moreover, some of the assistance applies to service sectors 
and is outside the scope of the ASCM.   
Canada's subsidy notification to the WTO is prepared in accordance with the obligations outlined in 
Article 25 of the ASCM. In particular, Canada notifi es subsides which it believes fall within the 
definition of Article 1 of the ASCM and are specific  within the meaning of Article 2 of the ASCM.  
 
As mentioned in the past, Canada supports the subs idy notification process as being an important 
transparency exercise and agrees that sub-federal subsidy programs that are determined to meet Canada's obligation under Article 25 of the ASCM should be notified. As such, the federal 
government is engaged in continuing consultation s with the provincial and territorial governments 
regarding subsidy notification requirements. Canada's 2015 subsidy notification represents our best efforts to notify all specific subsidy programs, at both the federal and sub-federal level, as 
required under Article 25 of the ASCM.  
 Investissement Québec; Government of Qu ébec Aeronautical Development Strategy 
 
Question 8 
 Canada's most recent responses on Inve stissement Québec (see G/SCM/Q2/CAN/62 
and G/SCM/Q2/CAN/64) state that fundin g under this program does not provide 
specific subsidies and is not in itself a pr ogram and need not be notified. The United 
States would express its cont inued concern regarding Canada contentions regarding this 
program. The programs' website places specia l focus on a limited number of industries, 
including, inter alia, aerospace , agri-food, information and communication technologies, 
life sciences, and microelectronics. This conc entration of funding for certain key sectors 
is also reflected in the programs' annual report.
9 Can Canada please ex plain why, in light 
of the program's apparent focus on certain in dustries, including aerospace, it does not 
consider this program subject to the Article 25 notification requirements?  
Reply: 
 
Investissement Québec is a development agency  and not a program. Investissement Québec 
manages various programs intended for businesses. These programs are subject to the same 
                                               
8 See W/TPR/S/314 at p. 80, para. 3.115. 
9 See http://www.investquebec.com/documents/qc/publications/RAIQ_2013-2014_fr.pdf . G/SCM/Q2/CAN/66 
 
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  analysis as existing programs and the relevant programs have been notified. The mere existence 
of this entity is not in itself a program and need not be notified.  McInnis Cement Plant 
 
Question 9  
Please explain why the government financia l support provided to the McInnis cement 
plant has not been notified?  Reply: 
 No government assistance was disbursed to Ciment McInnis (McInnis cement plant) during the period covered by the notification. 
 
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