Hello,
I have stumbled upon the following information while doing research on a Calgary MP. I thought it might be of interest:
Since this letter is rather lengthy, I will provide the following summary, followed by the letter. I do urge you to also read the letter as it contains a lot of information I cannot include in a summary:
· Calgary Centre MP, Lee Richardson, is the director and chairman of Streetlight Intelligence Inc. (http://ciec-ccie.gc.ca/ClientDeclarationPreviewMembers.aspx?DeclarationI..., http://streetlightiq.com/About/InvestorRelations/BoardofDirectors/tabid/... )
· On March 31st, 2009, Streetlight Intelligence was awarded an $185,000 grant for a product demonstration program. (http://www2.nrcan.gc.ca/dgc-dposc/index.cfm?fuseaction=r.d&lang=ENG&fisc... )
· Payments recorded in the 2008-2009 Public Accounts of Canada Transfer Payments document are inconsistent with the financial audited statements of Streetlight Intelligence Inc. (Public Accounts: http://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/recgen/pdf/44.pdf, Audited Financial Statements: http://streetlightiq.com/Portals/2/docs/financials/ID48_SLQ_FinancialSta... )
· This does not seem very transparent. It leaves many questions unanswered. I think an investigation is warranted.
On April 20th, 2009, Calgary Centre MP, Lee Richardson, filed a disclosure form with the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. On this form, he listed himself as the "director and Chairman of Streetlight Intelligence Inc." (http://ciec-ccie.gc.ca/ClientDeclarationPreviewMembers.aspx?DeclarationI...)
Twenty days previous to the filing of this statement, Natural Resources Canada (Lisa Raitt was Minister at the time) awarded Streetlight Intelligence Inc. with an $185,000 grant for a product demonstration program. (http://www2.nrcan.gc.ca/dgc-dposc/index.cfm?fuseaction=r.d&lang=ENG&fisc... ) It is important to note that from the period of 2006/05/09-2007/09/14, Lee Richardson was the Chair of the Natural Resources Committee - I am an unsure how relevant this information is, but it seems probable that it could be related. (http://webinfo.parl.gc.ca/MembersOfParliament/ProfileMP.aspx?Key=78659&S... )
According to the 2008-2009 Public Accounts of Canada Transfer Payments document, "A transfer payment is a grant, contribution or other payment made by the Government for which no goods or services are received. This information is displayed under each ministry." (Page. 2) In that same document on page 254, there are two places where Streetlight Intelligence Ltd shows up. Under First Nations Forestry Program a payment of $130,000 is recorded. Under Energy Efficiency Standards and Labelling Program, a payment of $130,000 is also recorded. I am unsure if these are two separate payments of $130,000, or if it is the same payment split between two different programs. (http://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/recgen/pdf/44.pdf )
Regardless of if this is one or two payments, the $130,000 amount seems odd. The Public Accounts of Canada covers the fiscal year of the Government, which ends on March 31 2009. According Streetlight Intelligence's audited annual financial statements for fiscal 2009 (Oct 31 2008- Oct 31 2009) only $113,200 has been spent so far, which is $16,800 short of $130,000. Here is an excerpt from the financial statement:
"The Company has completed the majority of the capital spending requirements under the agreement and has recognized $113,200 of funding. This was recorded as a reduction of the related inventory costs. Although NRCan withheld 10% ($11,321) of claims until completion of the program"
(http://streetlightiq.com/Portals/2/docs/financials/ID48_SLQ_FinancialSta...)
(Just a side note: This company is not a very healthy one. Streetlight Intelligence lost $2.78 million on sales of $6,300 in the fiscal year ending last October, according to the financial statement. In 2008 it lost $3,875,556 with sales of $256,695.It is currently involved in a deal with Ottawa Hydro, and from public comments on the internet, a lot of Ottawa Citizens are not happy about it: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/business/Ottawa+Hydro+hikes+lighting+invest...)
Also an interesting note: According to Streetlight Intelligence Inc. Management Discussion and Analysis Document for the nine month period ending July 31, 2009, they received an initial contribution of $56,000 in September 2008, six months prior to the disclosure of the grant (Note: I am unsure how quickly grants need to be disclosed.) (http://www.streetlightiq.com/Portals/2/docs/financials/ID46_Q3_MDA_2009.pdf)
I am bringing this forward to see if it could be investigated. Maybe it's all legitimate. But to me, an average citizen, it looks fishy. This Member of Parliament is the chairman of a company that is receiving government grants, and the paper trail of the grants does not seem too transparent. Even if there is no wrongdoing, making these processes more transparent will only benefit the taxpayer.
