Evidence of meeting #60 for Finance in the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was students.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Senior Economist, Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec
The idea of proposing certain measures as promoting innovation is mainly to send a clear message, which is not to sacrifice business productivity and competitiveness in order to return to fiscal balance.
With regard to the patent royalties exemption, the figure isn't available, but the goal is really to get a clear message, that is to say that the government will support innovation and productivity. So that's an idea that we're proposing to the government.
Conservative
Bob Dechert Conservative Mississauga—Erindale, ON
Thank you very much.
I have a question for Financial Executives International Canada. You mentioned earlier your general support for the national securities regulator. For 25 years I was a lawyer involved in corporate finance, and I can tell you many stories about deals that didn't come to Canada when international clients found out they had to file 13 times and go through that cost. It's good work for lawyers and auditors, but it's not very good for the investing public.
Can you give us a sense of how important you think a national securities regulator is to enable Canadian businesses to attract international investment, and what impact it might have on establishing Canada as a world leader in corporate finance?
Chief Executive and National President, Financial Executives International Canada
Thank you, Mr. Dechert.
It's really important, as I said to Ms. Block. It's a big competitive world out there, and Canada is a relatively small capital market versus the entire world. So the ease of access for the capital markets is critical. Things are better than they used to be. There is the passport system, but a single regulator with one security act instead of 13 securities acts.... Some of my best friends are recovering lawyers—
Chief Executive and National President, Financial Executives International Canada
—and they don't want to see their fees go away, but a single securities act and a single set of regulations, improved enforcement, a lot of the things that are currently being looked at at the securities regulator just make sense.
I might add, while we're at it, Mr. Menzies, if we look at the 13 pension regulators in the country, it might be time for your group to consider that consolidation and single simplicity just make sense.
Conservative
Conservative
Conservative
Bob Dechert Conservative Mississauga—Erindale, ON
Ms. Brisebois, many have mentioned that we should allow merchants to advertise and mark an “all in one” price for products including the HST, so long as it's shown on the invoice. What do you think of that suggestion?
President and Chief Executive Officer, Retail Council of Canada
For HST specifically?
Conservative
President and Chief Executive Officer, Retail Council of Canada
Or for a harmonized tax?
Conservative
President and Chief Executive Officer, Retail Council of Canada
First of all, the merchants are supportive of a harmonized tax. The challenge with internalizing the tax is that the tax is not the same right across the country. There is one province specifically that has no provincial sales tax, so this makes it very difficult for national retailers wanting to advertise a single price because in fact they could not if you force the combined tax to be hidden in the price of the goods.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
I'm sorry, we'll have to carry on that discussion after.
Mr. McKay has one question, I believe?
Liberal
John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON
Well, I've been sitting here for six years, Mr. Chair, and I did not know that this committee was here to protect lawyers' fees.
Liberal
John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON
This has been a bit of a revelation to me.
I wanted to address my question to Chief Shawn A-in-chut Atleo. Congratulations on your win. It was really quite dramatic. I rather hope they didn't have a write-in ballot. That could be a bit of a challenge with your name.
Testimony we heard earlier had to do with a transfer of title out of the crown to either bands or individuals. The argument put forward was that it would increase the value of property by about 90% and people would take out loans, fix up their houses, fix up their businesses, sell off the property. I'd be interested in your views on that matter.
National Chief, Assembly of First Nations
Well, that again is a good example of why I'm recommending that we strike a senior officials task force to examine some of the mechanisms that would unleash some of the economic potential, but not to do it in isolation of what Mr. Martin was alluding to, and that is, the relationship between the crown and first nations more broadly. Specifically, he was talking about the negotiations in British Columbia, which have cost over $300 million. I think we're hitting 16 years or so in that jurisdiction. Other examples can be brought out that are comparable throughout the entire country.
Really, you have the treaties, Treaties 1 to 11. They encompass over 300 first nations of the 633 across the country. They're not the only ones with treaties that have been signed over the years. They're throughout the Atlantic. They're in B.C., at the Douglas Treaty. There are modern-day treaty agreements in the Yukon and elsewhere and then there are those who are negotiating treaties.
To talk about specific examples you're referring to, to generate economic activity around a property or property ownership in isolation is not something we should be doing separately. These things need to be contemplated together. It's about honouring and implementing the treaties. The original treaties were always about economic arrangements. What we haven't done and what treaty first nations are looking to do is to work them out in a joint manner.
That's the reason I am coming here, not just with specific suggestions to make, but to recommend that we establish a joint task force to look at new mechanisms that smash the status quo.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
Okay, thank you very much, Mr. McKay.
I want to thank all of you for your presentations here this afternoon and for responding to our questions. It was a very interesting panel. Thank you all for participating.
Colleagues, just as a reminder, we are meeting at nine o'clock tomorrow morning in 269 West Block. We have a meeting with the parliamentary budget officer, also concerning the budget implementation bill, and we have a subcommittee in the afternoon.
We'll see you tomorrow.
The meeting is adjourned.