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March 5th, 2015

NDP REALITY CHECK: Promised regional investments Conservatives failed to get out the door: Denis Lebel cannot explain his negligence

Responding to NDP criticisms for failing to get $130 million out the door in promised job creation investments in Quebec, Denis Lebel released an absurd and inaccurate statement in response.

Essentially, the Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec claimed that when the available budgets are not used, they are simply carried over the following year.

But the government’s own official Public Accounts documents clearly contradict the minister’s claim.

Each year, 99% of these uninvested funds are returned to the consolidated fund and used for other purposes.

In 2014, for example, Denis Lebel, had a budget of $308 million for economic development in Quebec.

He used $269 million, but more than $38 million of this promised funding was returned to the treasury – and only $17,197 was actually carried forward to the subsequent year.

Instead of trying to mislead the public, Minister Lebel should explain why $38 million in promised regional development investments was instead returned into the federal coffers.

Canadians deserve better.