Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'm pleased to welcome two witnesses who are speaking to us in French today. It has been several months since we've had French speakers appear before the Finance Committee, and I'm very happy about this.
Please do not hesitate at all to express yourselves in your language.
I am a bit surprised when I hear the argument that companies which invest abroad, should pay lower taxes, and that this is profitable for Canada. It is the same argument as those who claim that the lower Canadians' salaries are the better the economy. I do not believe in this argument.
Let us consider the economic impact. Earlier, my colleague talked about the $4 billion that comes back from Barbados free of tax, which deprives the federal government of some $800 million in revenue. This calculation does not include the provincial tax or other tax havens and double dipping measures, etc. Therefore, we are talking about several billion dollars.
As a society, if we give up this billion dollars, then we must increase individual taxes, or cut back on services that keep the economy running. Is this good for the economy?
I would like for either Ms. Alepin or Mr. Lareau to answer.