Finance Committee on Oct. 4th, 2006

[Mike Wallace, Conservative, Burlington, ON]

—that six people have left, and part of the issue is rent, and a number of other things. In Ontario—and I don't know whether it's national, and I need to find this out—they're not allowed to be treated as businesses. I used to sell them office equipment, and they could not write that off as an input. It came out of their fees, basically.

Would your organization support the concept that a doctor's office would be treated as a business and be able to write those costs off, just as any other business could?

[Mike Allen]

Absolutely, Mr. Wallace. In fact, I always believed they were treated as a business.

[Mike Wallace, Conservative, Burlington, ON]

It's just a question.

[Mike Allen]

Absolutely. We would support anyone who is providing a service as being in a business.

[Mike Wallace, Conservative, Burlington, ON]

Okay, thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

[The Chair, Conservative, Brian Pallister]

Thank you, Mr. Wallace.

And thank all of you and each of you for the presentations today, and for a very stimulating exchange. We appreciate your time. We appreciate the time you've put into your endeavour today, but your time generally, of course, is valuable, so we thank you for giving us some of it. You're excused.

Before we lift, I have just a quick question to poll the members of the committee on a specific invitation I'd like to extend to you.

I know some of you are departing after Saskatoon, but I just wanted to say there's a very fine little unpretentious Chinese restaurant in my home town that does a special thing called a Peking duck dinner. It's a thirteen-course dinner, and they'll put it on for ten people or more. I wanted to ask those of you who are continuing with us.... If you're interested in it, we could arrange it.

I think it's $25 a person. It's unbelievable, so...and John McKay is buying.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Chair, Conservative, Brian Pallister]

We are adjourned.