Thank you. That's an excellent question.
We know that bread and butter generally aren't taxed because they're viewed as basic goods. However, housing, for a first-time buyer, is a necessity. So it should also be considered a basic good, and first-time buyers should be exempted from paying the GST on a new home.
A measure is already in place, but the value of the home can't exceed $225,000 for people to access it. There are no longer any homes valued at $225,000 in Canada, and the average price of a home in Quebec is $350,000. Outside Quebec, in two thirds of British Columbia and all of the greater Toronto area, for example, no buyers would qualify for the measure, as a result of which first-time buyers can't access it.
Incidentally, 5% of the price of a house is a large amount. It's $50,000 in many cases. That would be enough to pay the notary and the transfer tax and to buy a house. So we think it's necessary to eliminate the GST or to raise the upper threshold associated with these kinds of measures so they're accessible to more people.