Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I suppose everybody will agree that today's topic is very complex and difficult. I suppose that it is also the reason why we have lost all the students who were here at the beginning of the meeting.
I would like to deal with the issues separately. We have heard people talking about productivity and about tax evasion as if they were linked but they are two different things. Of course, it is obvious that corporations will always become more productive when we reduce their tax obligations but it is a totally different matter. The tax rate of Canadian corporations affects their productivity. However, there has to be some balance.
When we talk about rules allowing corporations to escape from local tax rates, it obviously makes them more competitive but only because they do not have to submit to local rules or because they find ways to avoid paying tax. We have heard recently in this committee about the double dipping issue which allows some corporations to deduct twice or more the same interest from the taxes that they have to pay.
Do you think it is acceptable? As far as interest deductibility is concerned, I seem to understand that nearly everybody is in favor but do you think it is acceptable? Do you think it is a good thing that corporations can practice double dipping, triple dipping and so on? If it is not acceptable, is there a way for us to identify those cases and, ultimately, to prevent or control that?