Thank you, Mr. Chair and honourable members.
On behalf of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, I thank you for the opportunity to speak to Bill C-60.
The society's mission is to take a leading role in efforts to find a cure for this disease and to help people with multiple sclerosis improve their quality of life. I want to point out that we are a member of Imagine Canada.
I plan to speak today about measures in Bill C-60 that strengthen the capacity of the Canadian charitable sector and support families and individuals living with a chronic illness or a disability.
We are encouraged by the recognition in Bill C-60 of the importance of and need to foster and promote a culture of giving in Canada. From 1990, the percentage of tax filers claiming donations has dropped from 29.5% to 23% in 2011. This is alarming. Over this period the number of tax filers has increased by approximately one-third, but the numbers claiming a donation have increased by just 3%. The “Canada Survey of Giving, Volunteering, and Participating” found that a majority of Canadians would give more if better tax incentives were in place. Therefore, the inclusion proposed in the budget of a new temporary first-time donor super credit for first-time claimants of the charitable donations tax credit will encourage young Canadians, in particular, and newcomers to Canada to donate to charity.
So that new credit will help stimulate the development of a new generation of donors. That's an urgent priority, given the reality many charities are facing today.
Furthermore, to build capacity in this charitable sector we recognize, as this committee did in its recent report, “Tax Incentives for Charitable Giving in Canada”, the importance of considering future and additional measures such as the stretch tax credit, which provides incentives for existing donors to give more. The stretch tax credit for charitable giving would increase the federal charitable tax credit for individuals by 10% on all new giving that exceeds previous donation levels. This proposal, I would suggest, must be given priority in planning for next year's budget or as soon as our budget is returned to fiscal balance, and would build very nicely on the super credit introduced this year. They are companion pieces in promoting this culture of giving that I've spoken about before.
Bill C-60 also proposes to expand the GST and HST tax exemption for publicly funded homemaker services to include personal care services such as bathing and feeding provided to individuals who, due to age or living with a disability, require such assistance at home. This is of particular significance to people affected by MS across the country, as MS is a lifelong, often disabling condition affecting all aspects of life for individuals and their families, including employment and financial security. Overwhelmingly, people with disabilities, including those with MS, choose to live at home and in the community, and therefore the exemption is a welcome measure.
We are also pleased to see a commitment to improving labour market opportunities for Canadians living with disabilities. For people living with MS, the impact of illness on employment is far too high. Up to 60% of people with MS leave the workforce entirely between five to 17 years after diagnosis. We're hopeful that the additional research funds to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the creation of a Canadian employees' disability forum can help to improve employment rates for persons with disabilities, including those affected by episodic disabilities like MS, disabilities that vary over time.
We also believe that creating a more supportive and flexible sickness benefit in the employment insurance program would support the labour market participation of people with disabilities. We hope to see continuing improvements in the EI regime and also in the RDSP program.
Finally, I would just like to applaud and acknowledge the investment and commitments to fund world-class research and innovation in the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Genome Canada, and the announcement of $15 million in new money that was allocated to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research's strategy for patient-oriented research.
The CIHR's flagship SPOR strategy, as it's known, is critical to harness innovative discoveries and to translate them for the benefit of Canadians.
I want to thank you, once again, for your invitation to testify. I am available to answer your questions.