Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Souris-Moose Mountain for his question which allows me to state unequivocally that there have been absolutely no legislative changes, retroactive or otherwise, to the overseas employment tax credit.
The statement he quoted by another member is in fact incorrect. This credit was introduced to make Canadian companies more competitive when bidding on foreign contacts. The object is to ensure that Canadian companies bidding on foreign contracts have every incentive to hire Canadians and provide jobs to this country. It was never intended to give anyone a tax holiday because they happen to work for a foreign parented corporation with a branch in this country.
What is happening is that there is a disallowance of ineligible tax credit claims and a normal reassessment in accordance with the law.