Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Marcoux, I'm really interested in your testimony in particular, because you talked about the health of the economy. Yesterday we heard testimony that mental health issues, for example, cost our economy $51 billion, and the ask was relatively small in comparison to that.
It has been stated over and over again that, if the money in these corporations is actually used for the business, nothing changes with these proposals. Yet you said this is going to stifle growth and services. The changes to these policies apply only to situations where money is removed for personal income tax reasons. I'm very curious to know how you think this is going to stifle growth and services, when the only change and the only impact is on personal income taxes. If the money is actually used and invested in the business, then there is no actual change.
My real question to you is this. We've been hearing more and more from doctors who disagree with the CMA's position. I'm wondering if you might be out of touch with your members. Do you actually think your members like the idea that tax policy—this is similar to Mr. Boulerice's question—should replace fair compensation, and are you actually now advocating for greater inequality among your membership? If you look at the chart that Mr. Wolfson provided, you see that in Ontario doctors are provided a greater benefit than maybe in other provinces. We've seen certain doctors who are on hospital lists that have no risk for collection, they don't employ anyone, but if they're a private corporation they can divert and pay less income tax. Even general practitioners don't have that same option because they would have to pay out in different ways.
Are you worried that you might be contributing to greater inequalities among medical professionals? You're advocating for a system that, even amongst your own members, even among doctors, doesn't have the same access for all to this type of diversion of taxes.