Finance Committee on Dec. 5th, 2007

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

Yes, I do actually.

[The Chair, Conservative, Rob Merrifield]

Then ask it quickly.

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

Stop interrupting me and I will.

It's estimated, Mr. Carney, that--

[The Chair, Conservative, Rob Merrifield]

Mr. Turner, a little respect for the chair or you'll have no more time left.

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

Is this coming off my time?

[The Chair, Conservative, Rob Merrifield]

Right now it is, yes.

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

Well then shut up, please, if you don't mind.

I would ask, Mr. Carney--

[Rick Dykstra, Conservative, St. Catharines, ON]

A point of order--

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

I get my time or I don't.

[Rick Dykstra, Conservative, St. Catharines, ON]

I'd ask Mr. Turner to respectfully withdraw the comments he just made. They are completely unparliamentary.

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

I withdraw them.

[The Chair, Conservative, Rob Merrifield]

Mr. Turner.

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

I just said I withdraw them.

[The Chair, Conservative, Rob Merrifield]

All right. Now ask the question or it will be the last you speak in this committee.

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

Don't threaten me, Chairman.

[The Chair, Conservative, Rob Merrifield]

I just stated a fact, sir. Now carry on or you're done.

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

Mr. Carney, I have a question for you. Do you believe that income trusts have a place in the capital markets?

[Mark Carney]

I believe capital market participants will make appropriate decisions, in terms of the structure, with which to organize businesses and which securities to buy or sell. That is a decision for capital market participants. A framework exists with tax neutrality between various corporate structures, and market participants make the decision about which structure and which entity to purchase.

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

Did you anticipate the drop in market capitalization of income trusts following the decision on October 31? Was the extent of that anticipated?

[Mark Carney]

I'll refer to my earlier answer on advice to ministers.

[The Chair, Conservative, Rob Merrifield]

Thank you very much. You're done.

Mr. Del Mastro, you have five minutes.

[Dean Del Mastro, Conservative, Peterborough, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I will pick up on that briefly.

Mr. Carney, on an aggregate scale, does it make any sense to look at markets in isolation and not take a look at the broader TSX, see the growth in the TSX, and see that investment that has gone from one area has likely gone to another?

[Mark Carney]

From the conduct of monetary policy, and looking through to the growth and output, the impact on employment, and ultimately, for us, the impact on inflation, it makes sense to look at wealth in aggregate. The big bits of wealth are equity market capitalization in aggregate, the performance of fixed income security, and, very importantly, housing wealth.

[Dean Del Mastro, Conservative, Peterborough, ON]

Thank you. I appreciate that.

I understand. Mr. Turner had an agenda. He actually supported the government decision on income trusts last year and he's just got a very short memory.

Mr. Carney, a lot of actors--

[Garth Turner, Liberal, Halton, ON]

A point of order, Mr. Chair.