Thank you, Mr. Chair. Let me start by congratulating all the members of this committee on their election or re-election, as the case may be, to the House of Commons, and you on your re-election as chair of the finance committee.
I would like to introduce our organization to all the new members of the committee who are not yet familiar with Imagine Canada. We are a nationally registered charitable organization, and we represent some 86,000 charitable and not-for-profit organizations, as well as social enterprises set up for the common good.
In terms of public policy, our priority is to work together with political decision-makers to make sure that the environment in which charitable, not-for-profit organizations work allows them to develop their social and economic contributions to the fullest.
You're all no doubt familiar with the work done by specific organizations in your constituencies and communities, but I'd be remiss if I didn't remind you that, according to the most recent data published by Statistics Canada, charities and non-profits employ 2.4 million people across the country and contribute some 8.5% to the GDP.
As a registered charity, Imagine Canada is limited to speaking about issues that relate to our charitable purpose as governed by the Canada Revenue Agency. We're not experts on climate change or environmental issues, nor is it within our remit to speak to those issues directly.
That being said, when the committee launched its pre-budget consultations last summer, we saw an opportunity to speak more broadly to the relationship between the federal government and sector organizations. As our brief points out, too often in the past governments have designed and implemented new initiatives in ways that preclude charities and non-profits from fully participating.
This may be as simple as language, referring to small business rather than small employers when designing a program that charities and non-profits are otherwise completely eligible to participate in. It may be design elements. Even when there is no conscious attempt to exclude charities and non-profits, the way in which a program is designed or a benefit is delivered may have that result.
Essentially, our appeal to you, and through the committee to the government, is simple. If there are going to be new initiatives to help businesses and organizations take steps to reduce their climate impact, please ensure that charities and non-profits are eligible, that communications efforts don't imply exclusion of charities and non-profits, and that program design doesn't inadvertently make those initiatives irrelevant to sector organizations.
We can work together, for example, to ensure an ongoing understanding of our sector's impact on the economy and on employment. I have just mentioned the most recent figures from Statistics Canada. They provide the first data gathered on the sector for 10 years; hence our next recommendation to give Statistics Canada the resources and the necessary mandate to compile and publish data on our sector, as the agency already does for all other sectors of the Canadian economy.
We have had long discussions with Statistics Canada officials. They are ready and willing to do the work. Moreover, the costs are minimal, less than $1 million per year in their view. That seems a small price to pay for the government and the sector to have the tools needed to improve our understanding of the sector and to make fact-based decisions and policies.
Of course, while data would be a start, it's not the be-all and end-all of what we hope would be a modernized relationship between the sector and government. We've already seen encouraging developments in recent years under governments of different political stripes. Measures have been implemented to encourage more charitable giving. The possibilities presented by new ways of achieving good, such as social finance and social enterprise, have been explored and encouraged.
Most recently, the permanent advisory committee on the charitable sector has come together, providing a forum for sector leaders and regulators to identify and propose solutions to long-standing issues. While the committee's mandate is relatively narrow, this is a very encouraging first step toward an improved partnership with government.
We're also very excited by the recommendations made by the Senate Special Committee on the Charitable Sector. Members of this committee were understandably occupied by other matters when the special committee reported in June, but I'd encourage you all to read at least the executive summary and recommendations. They lay out a road map for renewed relationship between the charitable sector and the government, and we look forward to discussing this with you and your colleagues over the life of this Parliament and finding practical and doable solutions to the challenges we all face.
Thank you once more for inviting me to have this discussion with you today. I will be pleased to answer your questions.