Mr. Speaker, I am happy to have an opportunity to speak on Bill C-237, which provides a super priority for wage earners and travelling salesmen who can claim up to $9,000 owed to them in the event of bankruptcy.
I would like to begin by picking up the point of the Reform Party member about how difficult it is for small and medium sized businessmen and women to get access to capital today. Because small business has a difficult time in getting access to capital, quite often the supporting suppliers to a small business will put their product or material into the business knowing that they have put themselves in a secure position. In fact when small businesses cannot get capital it is their suppliers that keep them going and help make them viable.
This bill is not only going to affect the way the banks look at financing small businesses but it will also create a situation with the suppliers where they will be hesitant in putting their product into a small business environment at a very generous credit condition.
We realize first of all that bankruptcy and insolvency are very complex issues. In the event of a business failing and going bankrupt there is only one pie to divide. If suddenly the priority is put on the wage earners and the travelling salesmen at a $9,000 level, not much room is left in many instances for the other components in the business equation.
I would like to repeat that the intention of the member is right. It is a complex issue. We amended the Bankruptcy Act just two years ago. Currently the Minister of Industry has the department developing a database on all the activity around bankruptcy cases. These studies are ongoing.
I really believe it is inappropriate to support this bill at this time. We should wait until we have the results of all that data which is being collected.
The member for Kootenay East has said something about the importance of the employee to the viability of the business. I share his view and I obviously believe that would be the view of the member for Portneuf as well.
In a case where we are putting all of the employees in a business in a super priority position at $9,000 per person, this would really affect the ability of a small businessman or woman to obtain the support that is usually required from banks. As we all know, even in the current condition banks are making it very difficult for small businessmen and women to obtain the necessary capital to meet their business plans and their objectives. Until we have the banks acting more progressively and until their attitudes change toward small business, this bill should be defeated.
The other thing I mentioned has to do with suppliers. I believe that if we sent a signal in a business that if the employees want to show confidence in what they are doing they should not be doing it by putting themselves in the priority position to the tune of $9,000 a head. That in turn might have an adverse reaction on the suppliers to the business. Quite often in small business situations these suppliers can make the difference in viability, as I mentioned earlier.