WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SCM/Q2/CAN/33 
10 October 2008 
 (08-4835) 
Committee on Subsidies 
and Countervailing Measures Original:   English 
 
 
 
SUBSIDIES 
 
Replies to Questions Posed by the SEPARATE CUSTOMS TERRITORY OF TAIWAN,  
PENGHU, KINMEN AND MATSU1 Regarding the  
New and Full Notification of CANADA2 
   The following communication, dated 7 October 2008, is being circulated at the request of the Delegation of Canada.   
 
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Question 1 
 
 Regarding the Structured Financing Facility (SFF) for New Canadian-built Vessels , we 
would like to know the amount of cases succeede d and the amount of financial support provided 
to foreign buyers and lessees, respectively.    
Reply
 
 
Number of cases succeeded, to date (since 2001):  30 (excludes domestic project Canadian Sailing Expeditions, whose claim is in process and thus not yet fully disbursed).   
 Number of foreign cases:  15.    Amount of financial support to foreig n buyers:  $25.5 million (since 2001).   
 Number of lessee cases:  0.   
 Amount of financial support to lessees:  $0.    
Question 2 
 
 As to the Canadian Apparel & Textiles Industries Programme , assistance is provided to 
textile companies to enhance productivity, and lower production costs.  Therefore, we are 
wondering the amount of exportation of these subsidised companies before and after receiving 
assistance.   
 Reply
 
 
 The Canadian Apparel & Textiles Industries Program (CATIP) has been used by a limited 
number of textile companies.  Industry Canada  does not have access to export numbers at the 
company level.  However, since the start of CA TIP in 2003, total value of Canadian exports for 
textiles diminished 24.1 per cent from $3,194.2 to $2,423.2 million in 2007.   
                                                      
1 G/SCM/Q2/CAN/28.   
2 G/SCM/N/155/CAN.   G/SCM/Q2/CAN/33 
Page 2  
 
  Question 3 
 
 With reference to the Innovation, Development Entrepren eurship and Access to Markets 
Programmes for Sees , Regional Strategic Initiatives Programme , ACOA Business Development 
Programme , Community Future Programme and Service Delivery Network Programme , we would 
like to know whether the criteria determining an SME in these programmes are the same as the 
criteria applied in the Canada Small Business Financing Programme , in which an SME is a 
business with gross revenues not exceeding $5 million a year.   
 
Reply
 
 
 For the purposes of the Innovation, Developmen t Entrepreneurship and Access to Markets 
Programme for SMEs and the Regional Strate gic Initiatives Programme during the 2004/05 and 
2005/06 fiscal years, the Canada Economic Development Agency for Quebec Regions (CED-Q) recognized firms or establishments with fewer th an 500 employees as SMEs.  This reflected the 
general definition applied by ot her national organizations.  However, following the example of 
policies adopted by other Canadian federal agen cies and departments, CE D-Q concentrated its 
program activities on smaller firms, generally those with fewer than 200 employees.     Criteria for determining an SME under th e Business Development Program and the 
Community Future Program are not the same as th e criteria applied in the Canada Small Business 
Financing Program in which an SME is a busin ess with gross revenues not exceeding $5 million a 
year.  The criteria used are as follows:   
 
• Business Development Program (BDP) - Firms with less than 500 employees and less than 
$50 million in annual revenues. 
 
• Community Futures (CF) – SME are defined as having less than 500 employees and annual sales 
revenue of less than $20 million, and produce goods and services for the market economy, 
regardless of their business structure (e.g. so le proprietorships, for-profit or non-profit 
corporations, cooperatives, etc.).  The maximum size of loan a CF organization can make to 
an SME is $150,000.   
 
• The Service Delivery Network Programme  (SDNP) expired in December 2005 and is not being 
renewed.  There was no specific definition of SME in the SDNP Terms and Conditions.  The 
maximum size of investment fund provided to a non-profit Service Delivery organization to 
enable them to make loans to SMEs was $500,000 and the maximum individual loan size 
was $75,000 so in practice the majority of loan s would have been to micro and very small 
enterprises.   
 Question 4 
 
 Turning to the Book Publishing Industry Development Programme  and Publication 
Assistance Programme , we would like to know the amount of imported books and magazines 
before the beginning of this programme and during the period of these subsidies.    G/SCM/Q2/CAN/33 
 Page 3 
 
 
  Reply  
 Answer:  Book Publishing Industry Development Program
 
 
Background 
 
• At inception in 1979, this program was first known as the Canadian Book Publishing 
Development Program.  The program's current fo rm was put in place in 1993 under the name 
Book Publishing Industry Development Program (BPIDP).   
 
Definitions  
• In 2004 Statistics Canada developed its Canadian Framework for Culture Statistics , creating 
new definitions for culture industry classificati ons, culture goods, services, and occupations.  
Thus the definition of what would be included in the category of a "book" changed slightly 
in 2004, which affected the trade data from previous years.  The Framework is harmonized to 
international classification standards, and is  based on the 2002 North American Industry 
Classification System (NAICS), 2001 Standard  Classification of Goods (SCG), Central 
Product Classification (CPC) v. 1.1, and the 2001 National Occupation Classification -
Statistics (NOC-S).  Trade data  issued since reference year 2004 now conforms to the new 
Canadian Framework for Culture Statistics  definitions.   
 
• For a list of SCG codes relevant to book imports, see the Canadian Framework for Culture 
Statistics , available from: 
http://www.statcan.ca/bsolc/englis h/bsolc?catno=81-595-MIE2004021 .   
 
Current data  
• Statistics Canada has been providing data on book imports and exports based on that culture 
framework from reference year 1996 to the pr esent.  The most recent version, which 
includes book imports into Canada (below) fo r the period 2000-2006, is available at:  
http://www.statcan.ca/bsolc/english/bsolc?catno=87-007-XWE .   
 
• Trade data for book imports into Canada  before 1996 does not conform to the Canadian 
Framework for Culture Statistics , and thus is not comparable with current data.   
 
 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 
 Thousands of dollars 
Imports         
Writing 
and published 
works         
Books  1,420,694 1,422,811 1,525,891 1,452,666 1,429,528 1,412,634 1,404,520 
 
 Answer:  Publications Assistance Program (PAP)
 
 
The Publications Assistance Program has been in place for over 150 years under various 
names/formats.  As such, no data is available prior to  the start of this program in its earliest form.   G/SCM/Q2/CAN/33 
Page 4  
 
  Definitions 
 
• Following international classification standards,  data for periodicals and newspapers is 
combined, rendering the separate analysis of  periodicals trade fairly difficult.   
 
• A caution:  the Import data for periodicals and ne wspapers are not able to capture periodicals 
entering Canada by subscription through the mail, which are significant.  
 
• In 2004 Statistics Canada developed its Canadian Framework for Culture Statistics , creating 
new definitions for culture industry classificati ons, culture goods, services, and occupations.  
Thus the definition of what would be include d in the category of a "periodical" changed 
slightly in 2004, which affected the trade data from previous years.  The Framework is 
harmonized to international classification standa rds, and is based on the 2002 North American 
Industry Classification System (NAICS), 2001 Standard Classification of Goods (SCG), Central Product Classification (CPC) v. 1.1, and the 2001 National Occupation Classification 
-Statistics (NOC-S).  Trade data issued since reference year 2004 now conforms to the new 
Canadian Framework for Culture Statistics  definitions.   
 
• For a list of SCG codes relevant to periodicals imports, see the Canadian Framework for 
Culture Statistics , available from:   
http://www.statcan.ca/bsolc/englis h/bsolc?catno=81-595-MIE2004021 .   
 
Current data  
• Statistics Canada has been providing data  on imports and exports of periodicals and 
newspapers (combined) based on the culture  framework, from reference year 1996 to the 
present.  The most recent version (below), whic h includes periodicals and newspapers imports 
into Canada for the period 2000-2006, is available at:   
 http://www.statcan.ca/bsolc/english/bsolc?catno=87-007-XWE . 
 
• Trade data for newspaper and periodicals impor ts into Canada before 1996 does not conform 
to the Canadian Framework for Culture Statistics , and thus is not comparable with current 
data.   
 
 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 
 Thousands of dollars 
Imports         
Writing 
and published works         
Newspapers 
and periodicals  1,059,383 1,037,956 1,004,600 1,120,124 1,126,665 1,157,581 1,155,815 
  G/SCM/Q2/CAN/33 
 Page 5 
 
 
  Question 5 
 
 With regard to the Atlantic Ground fish Strategy (TAGS) Early Retirement Programme  
which provides income support in the form of  annuity payments, we would like to know the 
opinion of the Canadian Government on whether this subsidy should be prohibited.  Additionally, we also want to know mo re details about the facilitation under the Aboriginal 
Fisheries Strategy Allocation Transfer Programme  and Fisheries Access Programme .   
 Reply
 
  Given that the TAGS Early Retirement Programme provided assistance to fishers to cope 
with Atlantic groundfish crisis and help reduce dependency on fisheries, we are of the view that this 
programme created an incentive for people to perm anently leave the fisheries sector, thus not 
contributing to overcapacity and over-fishing an d not constituting a pr ohibited subsidy under 
the ASCM.   
  Both the Fisheries Access Programme and th e Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy Allocation 
Transfer Programme facilitate increasing Aboriginal  participation in fisheries through the voluntary 
retirement of commercial licences and the issuance of  equivalent licences to eligible Aboriginal 
groups.  This approach ensures that the access pr ovided to Aboriginal groups does not add to the 
existing effort on resources.  The Allocation Tran sfer Programme is an on-going programme with 
$10 million in funding annually.  It should be noted that the Fisheries Access Program ended 
March 2007.   
 
 The Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy enables th e Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) to 
manage the fishery in a manner c onsistent with Supreme Court of Canada decisions and Canada's 
treaty processes.  The programme seeks to provide for the effective manage ment and regulation of 
fishing by Aboriginal groups through the negot iation of mutually acceptable and time-limited 
fisheries agreements between DFO and Aboriginal  groups.  Where DFO reaches agreement with an 
Aboriginal group, the Minister of Fisheries and Oc eans will issue a licence to the group that reflects 
the agreement reached.  Aboriginal Fisheries St rategy agreements negotiated under the programme 
could contain:   
 
• provisions with respect to amounts of fish that may be fished for food, social and 
ceremonial purposes;   
• terms and conditions that will be included in  the communal fishing licence ( e.g. species, 
amount that may be fished, area, gear, times, reporting requirements);   
• arrangements for co-operative management by the Aboriginal group and DFO of fishing 
by the group for food, social and ceremonial purposes;   
• cooperative management projects for the impr ovement of the management of fisheries 
generally, such as stock assessment, fish e nhancement and habitat management;  and  
• provisions related to communal licences unde r the Allocation Transfer Program for 
obtaining access to commercial fisheries and/or other economic development 
opportunities.   
 
 
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