Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I thank all of the witnesses for being here, those who are here in Ottawa, or participating by video conference or by telephone.
The main finding that emerges from most if not all of your comments is that Bill C-2 largely meets with the government's objective to reduce inequalities. This can be compared to the first act of a play, the second one being the 2016 budget tabled in the House by the Minister of Finance. With that in mind, I would like you all to comment.
You also pointed out in your respective presentations that the tax system needs to be reviewed.
I know, Mr. Mintz, that you've written about this as well, in your comments in The Globe and Mail on April 18, saying that it's time to look at the Income Tax Act. Other witnesses here today have mentioned that this is probably a necessary exercise, because there are a number of distortions in the act; that whether you look through an inequality lens, a tax-simplification lens, or a proper-incentives lens, tax reform is something that is more or less urgently needed in Canada.
I'd like you to briefly address both of those points, the inequality point and the tax reform point.