The Department of Finance is aware of the concerns from these stakeholders. We are conducting our analysis and considering options.
I want to provide a quick background on exactly what's happening here. The first tax rate is linked to the non-refundable tax credit rate, so when the first tax rate goes down or up, the same thing happens in parallel with the credit rate. The purpose of the linking is to offset the tax on the income that is used to pay for whatever expense is related to the tax credit the person is claiming. We use the lowest rate for that, because everyone who pays tax, irrespective of what bracket they're in, will pay the lowest rate on at least a portion of their income, so it's a principle of fairness in the system. It also ensures that people claiming similar credit amounts receive the same tax relief, irrespective of their level of income. Consequently, that does mean, for anyone who claims a non-refundable tax credit in 2025, that rate will go from 15% to 14.5%, and in 2026 and future years, to 14%.