I don't know that we've asked that specific nuance to the question, but in the deck I shared with the clerk, which I believe was sent to you, on how business owners intend to exit their business.... It's on page 5 of the deck if you have it.
The top answer in terms of to whom they might leave their business is that 48% of businesses say they plan to sell to buyers unrelated to their family; 25% say they plan to sell to employees, which is another topic for another day at finance committee; 25% of businesses say they are looking to sell to family members; 21% to transfer to family members through an inheritance; and 15% wind down.
This data was pre-pandemic. What it doesn't tell you, which is I think the nature of your question, is what would happen if the rules were different. Would some of those who are looking to sell outside of their family choose to sell to the family, and would that cause some form of shift?
Our suspicion from the discussions we've had with business owners is that it would. We've talked to many business owners and in fact some of the kids, who say it makes no financial sense to pass the business down from one generation to the next. That would be perhaps a smart decision for the future of the company, but not a good decision for mom and dad who are looking to retire.
I want to underscore the other point: 80% of our members look to the value of their business to fund their retirement. They don't have huge numbers of RRSPs, or defined benefit pension plans. They are relying on the value of their business, and especially as we come out of COVID, that value is way lower for many of these business owners and something we should all keep in mind as we look at this.