Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to speak at report stage of Bill C-70. Despite the diatribe that has been heard before me, this debate is really about harmonization. This debate is about the new single harmonized tax system. This debate is about a simpler, fairer and more economically efficient harmonized tax system. This debate is about benefits that would be realized by individuals, communities and groups.
I will speak about five different areas in which the new single harmonized tax system will benefit consumers and businesses. I want to talk about the economic benefits it will have for all Canadians. I want to talk about the lower administrative costs. I want to talk about organizations such as colleges, schools, hospitals, universities and the registered charities which will benefit from this system.
My colleague spoke about consumers. He spoke about the benefits which will be realized as a result of the tax inclusive pricing rules inherent in Bill C-70. Those rules will ensure that consumers know the full price of a good or a service before paying for it, while keeping the rate of sales tax visible on receipts.
Another of my colleagues spoke about businesses which will have to deal with only one set of sales tax forms. There will be one set of operating rules. There will be one tax administration.
There is a business in my area run by Mr. Cinelli, a hairdressing salon. He has spoken about the time and the effort which he has to expend because of the GST. It is complicated and it affects his business.
There are benefits for Atlantic Canada. Members of Parliament from Atlantic Canada have spoken about the benefits the new system will have for business.
Would we in Ontario have such benefits? All Ontario members of Parliament are awaiting Premier Mike Harris' pledge to harmonize the system. We appeal to him at this point in time to get onboard and to consider the harmonized system which he knows will benefit the province of Ontario. It will benefit the businesses of Ontario, especially the businesses that currently have to deal with so much administration.
We have also heard from members across the way a whole series of difficulties they see with the system. They do not seem to understand the intent of harmonization. Or maybe they refuse to understand the benefits which a single, harmonized tax will provide for businesses. Economic benefits will flow from the removal of tax on business inputs. There will be lower administration costs.
A lot of time has been spent talking about the Prime Minister and individuals who spoke while in opposition without fully considering the low administrative costs which businesses will realize. The intent must surely be to ensure that Canadian businesses survive and grow and that administrative and economic benefits are provided to those businesses so they can provide jobs.
We have in Canada 73,000 to 75,000 registered charities. Four thousand of them are comprised of hospitals, universities, public colleges and schools. They are not for profit organizations engaged in charitable activities.
In my riding there are several hundred registered charities. They vary from small relief organizations, anti-poverty groups, benevolent groups, the cancer society to others like the children's aid society, the YMCA and YWCA. Those charities are small. They have unsophisticated accounting systems and rely heavily on volunteers. Those organizations will benefit from the harmonized sales tax system. The administration of those organizations and the workload of their volunteers will be simplified as a result of the harmonized sales tax.
Bill C-70 is designed to significantly simplify that burden for charities. What I consider to be the four or five important measures that will assist those organizations-