Finance committee  Thank you. First of all, I'm absolutely delighted to be here representing Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada. Before discussing the two specific measures we're supporting, I wanted to provide a highlight reel of information so that it kind of contextualizes our thoughts. Big

Finance committee  As an organization that has all these branches across the country, our feeling, as we've looked at this, is that because our core competency in terms of driving revenue really has come from the corporate community over the years, a real new area of growth for us is in mission-bas

Finance committee  I think it's a great question, and I don't think there's a simple answer. I think that's the challenge: tax incentives alone.... And I agree with Michael's point—there's not a magic bullet here. I think there's a combination. Tax incentives are absolutely part of the pie. I think

Finance committee  I think there was an interesting term that you used in terms of urgency. I think one of the challenges I could see in thinking about that question is this: how do you define one being more urgent than the other? I agree. I think the voluntary sector, the charitable and non-profi

Finance committee  I don't have a response from the government side. I'm not sure there's something top of mind that really leaps to mind. I immediately go to the organizational side, because organizations like ours have seen these, on an occasional basis, happen across the country. Now I know that

Finance committee  Yes, I agree. I think the first step is around civic engagement and how kids understand the role of their coaches as volunteers and understand that some of the people with whom they interact, their mentors, are volunteers playing a role in their community, and that they need supp

Finance committee  Sorry, can you just rephrase that?

Finance committee  If there is an opportunity to have greater recognition of the cash investments, that's fantastic. But to be honest with you, I'm not qualified to throw an opinion on that one.

Finance committee  I think the reaction would be that it wouldn't be overly popular to suggest that there's one element of the voluntary sector that is more important than others. If you just want an honest, gut feel, I think there would be a lot of organizations who would say, we understand and re

Finance committee  Good afternoon, everyone. Thanks for the opportunity to share our thoughts with you today. As part of a vibrant non-profit sector that represents 11.1% of Canada's workforce and whose $106 billion in economic activity counts for 7.1% of GDP, Big Brothers Big Sisters is an on-the

Finance committee  They're both interdependent and independent questions. First and foremost, our organization has a tendency to serve a lot of kids who come to us with multiple risk factors. These are kids who are going to be living in poverty and are transient. They may be witnessing family viole

Finance committee  Absolutely: the cost benefit is incredible.

Finance committee  The answer is yes, we do have a business plan. The investment we're looking for is modest support to help do a feasibility assessment to assess the market environment as to whether it will support this. Our outcomes here are: (a) to help Canadian companies be more competitive aro

Finance committee  Oh—

Finance committee  Sure—