Thank you very much.
Mr. Giroux, you and you office and your predecessor are heroes, I think, to many Canadians, particularly because of the fight the PBO has waged to get the information from the Canada Revenue Agency. It allows us to get a good estimate of the tax gap in Canada—the money that's lost to overseas tax havens, the money that's lost to tax loopholes. The PBO waged a five-year fight to finally get that money. The previous government wouldn't permit it. The current government wouldn't permit it. Thankfully, the PBO finally said, “We'll take you to court unless you give that information.”
At the time, your predecessor, Mr. Fréchette said the time that it would take to actually produce a tax gap report depends on the quality of the information we receive. This report would be vital, I think, for the next federal election, when Canadians get a chance to look at the fiscal platforms of each of the parties. He said that if the Canada Revenue Agency gives us a paper version of files in boxes, it's going to take a lot longer than if there's a transfer of legitimate electronic information.
I think Canadians would be interested in knowing what quality of information you have received from the Canada Revenue Agency, and what you think in terms of a timeline to produce this important report. I think a lot of Canadians are waiting for it and want to know how much the federal government loses to wealthy tax dodgers and tax havens overseas.