Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Etobicoke North.
I listened to the member who just spoke on behalf of the Bloc. I was not sure that the speech had anything to do with the revenue bill, but I cannot stand in this place and allow certain comments that were made not to be challenged.
It does not seem to matter to members opposite from time to time if statements are based on fact or on someone's personal interpretation of a particular committee report. The member went on at some length about the report of the subcommittee on sports in Canada. The member should read that report as I have done. Nowhere in that report will a reference to tax breaks for millionaire athletes be found. I am absolutely confident that members of the government would be opposed to such a thing.
I wonder what the member might say to the people of Quebec City who lost their hockey team due to its inability to compete in the marketplace known as the National Hockey League in North America.
I wonder what the member of the Bloc might say to the fans in Montreal and right across Canada if the Montreal Canadiens were to find themselves in jeopardy or facing bankruptcy or the possibility of moving to the United States. It is unimaginable that a veteran franchise such as the Montreal Canadiens could simply lose its position in the Canadian sports scene.
All that committee has done is highlight the difficulties faced in an industry. Sports in Canada is an industry. The Montreal Canadiens alone pay more in property tax than all franchises in the United States combined. It is a stunning figure and a frightening situation.
I refer other members of the House, not the member of the Bloc, to the minority reports that were appended to the committee because there was a lot of support for amateur sports in the country. I just wanted to correct the record in that regard.
I have heard members say in this place that somehow the revenue bill was being rushed through the House. I did a bit of research. In the throne speech of February 1996 an announcement was made by the government of its intention to introduce this bill. On June 4 the bill was introduced for first reading and on October 2 it received second reading. It was then sent to committee where witnesses from across Canada were interviewed about the impact that they thought the bill might have. Here we are at December 8 and we are talking about third reading of the bill.
To suggest that the bill has been given short shrift or in some way rammed through parliament is to simply mislead the Canadian public. The bill has had debate. It has had input.
I also heard from members opposite, particularly those in the New Democratic Party, who said that none of the provinces had bought into the bill and that none of the provinces were prepared to accept the new agency.
Let me deal first with the province of Quebec. It is interesting that in committee the other day members opposite put forth 188 amendments, every one of them calling for a particular clause to be rejected. How many clauses might hon. members think are in the bill? There happened to be 188. In their creative way of thinking, from a province that does not even have its taxes collected by the federal government but has its own tax collection regime, they would take exception to the agency for some unknown reason, simply because it is a government bill and to oppose is to oppose is to oppose.
Let us talk about quotes from some of the folks whom we have talked to. The minister of finance for the province of Nova Scotia, Mr. Don Downe said:
This contract builds on the current strong, co-operative relationship between Nova Scotia and Revenue Canada and provides the means for our relationship to evolve under the new agency.
Another five provinces are actively working with Revenue Canada to determine if this agency could improve the administration of their programs because they understand that at the end of the day there is only one taxpayer.
Even Ernie Eves, the Ontario Minister of Finance, in a letter of September 22 makes the following point:
The CCRA could benefit Ontario taxpayers if it is able to administer Ontario taxes (both non-harmonized and harmonized)—
That is a very interesting point, because the Conservatives in Ontario have been very staunchly opposed to any kind of harmonization, to any kind of attempt to bring collection agencies together and perhaps establish one base tax that could be collected for all.
Why should we fight over who collects it? It gets transferred down to the provinces. Possibly it could be collected in a harmonized negotiated atmosphere and transferred up. Up to this point Mr. Eves and his government have refused to even discuss it. He goes on in his letter:
—more cheaply and efficiently than the Ontario government... taxpayers could benefit if the CCRA were able to improve services available to taxpayers.
Many think that there is some kind of coalition between the Ontario Conservative Party, the Reform Party and the drive to unite the right. I want to take members a little farther west on that point, if I might, to a proud Albertan, the provincial treasurer of Alberta, Mr. Stockwell Day. We have seen Mr. Day in negotiations with the Leader of the Opposition and with others on the unite the right drive. We have seen Tony Clement, the minister of transportation for Ontario, joining that somewhat crowded king size bed. Maybe it is queen size, I am not sure. It is not that big, but they are attempting to expand it. I am sure members get my point.
The reason they are all doing this, they try to purport, is to somehow offer a magical solution to the Liberals. Are you signalling victory or two minutes remaining, Mr. Speaker? Poll after poll indicates that Canadians believe in the government, believe in the things we are doing. We have incredible support for our Prime Minister and for the policies of the government. Let me share the comments of Stockwell Day:
It's good to see Revenue Canada becoming more open to provincial input in its approach to collecting provincial taxes, as it moves toward its new status as a federal crown agency. We're always willing to explore possibilities that would benefit our taxpayers as well as safeguard the public purse.
It appears that as we speak, unfolding before us at this very moment, the wheels on the unite the right wagon are falling off.
It appears that Mr. Day sees the benefits of an agency that could streamline administration, that could be more open and accessible to Canadians, that could benefit every taxpayer at the provincial and the federal level.
Frankly I congratulate him for not confusing the politics of extremism on the right with—I hate to use word common sense because Mr. Harris seems to think he owns it—the common sense of putting in place an agency that will be accountable to parliament, where there will be a mandatory five year review of the agency and an opportunity at the public accounts committee to review it even more often. It will be an agency that will be accountable to the minister, accountable to parliamentarians, accountable to provincial treasurers and ministries across the land. It is an agency whose time has come.
As we hear people talk about rationalization and downsizing, we have an opportunity to do something that will save taxpayers' money and benefit all Canadians.