Sure. These proposals deal with measures that were originally announced quite a while ago, in the 1999 budget. Drafts were released over the years--in 2000 and in 2001-02. In 2003, they were tabled as a notice of ways and means motion, and again in draft legislation in 2005, eventually making their way into this bill. On each of those occasions they dealt with an opportunity to provide more consultation with the tax profession and iron out some of the areas of contention.
In essence, these measures try to ensure, in the context of the foreign investment entities and non-resident trusts, that Canadians cannot get a better tax deal by investing offshore than by investing in Canada. In the case of non-resident trusts, they try to ensure that people cannot move income out of the Canadian tax net by moving assets into non-resident trusts.