Thank you, Chair.
I've certainly spoken with a woman in Calgary who was a U.S. person although a Canadian for many years, whose son was born in Canada. She is concerned that her son does not have the mental ability, because he has a mental disability, to renounce his U.S. citizenship. He didn't apply in the United States before his 19th birthday. He's deemed to be a U.S. person under a foreign law. He's a fellow Canadian, and he's caught up in the FATCA web.
I don't understand why we as a sovereign country have to simply go along with this law, presumably to protect the banks. I realize the importance of the economy and the like, but this is a human rights issue, Mr. Chairman.
We've heard testimony as well from Professor Cockfield who was here at our committee who pointed out:
...by entering into the IGA we are in compliance. That has bought us time. The July 1 withholding tax, as I understand it, as a matter of technical law, will not kick in because we've complied. We're a democracy, a sovereign country. We're investigating certain concerns surrounding the IGA, and it will be implemented at a later date.
Mr. Chairman, there's plenty of time for us to get this right. To have it rammed through in an omnibus budget bill without proper time to scrutinize such a complicated piece of legislation with such impact on our fellow Canadians is simply wrong.