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.
6:15 p.m.
Liberal
Massimo Pacetti Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC
For the tax system, to know more or less the cost of the work, there has to be a corresponding value.
6:15 p.m.
Liberal
Massimo Pacetti Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC
I don't need the answer immediately, but you could perhaps think about it and give it to me later.
6:15 p.m.
Liberal
Massimo Pacetti Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC
Madame Brisebois, I think the Liberals made a statement today about our position on debit cards. What has been your association's discussions with government since the preliminary hearings we had on debit and credit cards?
6:15 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Retail Council of Canada
There have not been any major changes to our position.
6:15 p.m.
Liberal
Massimo Pacetti Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC
I was asking about your discussions with the government, not your positions.
6:15 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Retail Council of Canada
Discussions with government have centred on a code. This was discussed openly with different organizations. Our position was similar. We said that the only way this could work was if the code had meat on the bone. We will continue to advocate for a flat fee, and for the elimination of “honour all cards” and priority routing. These are the same issues that were addressed before the Senate banking committee.
6:15 p.m.
Liberal
Massimo Pacetti Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC
Is the government listening? Is the government going to react?
6:15 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Retail Council of Canada
The reason I'm here today is that we are concerned. If the government is listening, it's not acting as quickly as our merchants are telling us it must. We've estimated that the new fees will cost merchants more than $300 million, with no changes to the system. That's difficult to deal with in fragile economic times.
6:15 p.m.
Conservative
6:15 p.m.
Bloc
Jean-Yves Laforest Bloc Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
I have a question for Ms. Brisebois.
This spring, we talked a lot about the increase in credit card fees for merchants. Today, you told us more about the entry of MasterCard and Visa in the debit card purchase sector.
In your brief, you also talked about the management of residual materials by merchants. You said there were disparities among the provinces, among the municipalities. In concrete terms, how do you see the solution to that problem?
6:15 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Retail Council of Canada
In concrete terms, it would be a harmonization of environmental costs across Canada, on the understanding that every province and program can have different costs. It isn't the amount specifically; it's the way the amount is calculated, how you determine the amount of the sale of the product, that is to say that certain provinces want it to be internalized, while other provinces realize that this isn't a good idea from a competitive standpoint.
What we really want is a harmonization of the regulations and the manner in which environmental costs are calculated.
6:15 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Retail Council of Canada
Thank you.
6:15 p.m.
Bloc
Jean-Yves Laforest Bloc Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
Thank you.
Mr. Duguay, you proposed that there be an expanded free trade agreement with the European Union. In the light of our experience with the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas in the past few years, are there any sectors that should be excluded from such an agreement or warnings that should be made for the negotiation of an agreement with the European Union?
6:15 p.m.
Senior Economist, Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec
As I explained earlier, the purpose in promoting a free trade agreement with the European Union is really to diversify markets and ensure we keep in mind the lessons of this recession. NAFTA has also shown that more open markets bring definite benefits. There is a very broad consensus on the economic and trade benefits that NAFTA provides, in terms of openness to the European markets. We advocate the free movement of goods so that resources are allocated to the best places and the best performing businesses can innovate and conquer new markets.
6:20 p.m.
Bloc
Jean-Yves Laforest Bloc Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC
You believe that would stimulate innovation in particular?
6:20 p.m.
Senior Economist, Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec
Absolutely, because, by doing business with a country in western Europe or central Europe, for example, you're selling a product, but you're going to be looking for expertise and you'll be communicating with people. That's definitely beneficial for the Quebec and Canadian economy.
6:20 p.m.
Conservative
Bob Dechert Conservative Mississauga—Erindale, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for your presentations.
My first question is for the Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec.
Monsieur Duguay, you mentioned in your brief the effect of the reduction in corporate tax rates being rolled out by the government over several years, that it will result in Canada having one of the most favourable corporate tax rates in the OECD by 2012.
I note today that the parliamentary budget officer has made very favourable statements with regard to Canada's comparative debt-to-GDP ratio with respect to other nations, other OECD and G-20 nations, and with respect to the situation that existed in the recessions of the 1980s and 1990s.
Can you give us your view on how important those planned corporate tax rate reductions are to Canada's competitiveness over the next five years? Can you also tell us how you see the comparisons between Canadian corporate tax rates and those of, say, the United States and other major competitive nations, given that our debt-to-GDP ratio is so much better than in those other countries?
6:20 p.m.
Senior Economist, Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec
To promote greater long-term productivity, long-term economic growth, we have to rely on business productivity, innovation and competitiveness. There are a number of factors that will promote that, such as education levels and geographical position, but also, in large part, general taxation rates. The government set a clear direction. It was its intention to lower the marginal rates in order to promote business competitiveness.
We are asking the government to continue in that vein and not to sacrifice that in order to return to a balanced budget because the short-term economic benefits would be offset by slightly more negative long-term effects on productivity, economic growth and wealth creation. So we're asking the government to retain its intention to lower marginal rates by 2012.
6:20 p.m.
Conservative
Bob Dechert Conservative Mississauga—Erindale, ON
Thank you very much.
I was very interested in the suggestion in your brief that the government exempt from taxes in Canada the royalties on Canadian-developed patents. Can you tell us what you think the cost of that program might be on an annual basis?
