Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to rise today to speak to Motion M-318 moved by my colleague, the Reform Party whip and member for Fraser Valley.
His motion calls for legislation to be brought in to make the deduction for contributions to charitable organizations no less than the tax deduction for contributions to political parties.
This motion flows from a recommendation made by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance in its 24th report to the 35th Parliament, which was tabled in January 1996.
Indeed, the committee recommended that the government consider increasing tax deductions for contributions to charitable organizations to match the tax deduction for contributions to political parties. The government never took this recommendation into account in preparing the various budgets tabled since 1996, preferring to maintain a policy of cutbacks, particularly in transfer payments to the provinces.
These cuts have resulted in the first surplus in a very long time being accumulated in the coffers of the federal government, which merrily took advantage of this fiscal flexibility regained through other people's efforts to shamelessly step into provincial jurisdictions with blatant initiatives like the millennium scholarships.
As noble as the stated purpose of helping students may be, there was a hidden agenda to increase the federal government's visibility at the provinces' expense. In addition, in the riding of Verchères, the government's erratic fiscal behaviour led to the termination of the Tokamak project in Varennes, a world leader in microwave technology stemming from nuclear fusion research.
Research conducted in the Tokamak laboratories was promising in terms of new, safe and clean sources of energy. This motion is a wake up call to the government about its unfairness and its fiscal inconsistency.
Those making a $100 contribution to a political party enjoy a federal tax credit of $75. However, a $100 gift to a charity entitles the contributor to a tax credit of $17. Today's social difficulties arising from the many federal budget cuts have created an ever expanding socio-economic role for charitable organizations because of the increasing withdrawal of governments.
The donors enabling these organizations to carry on their work in the community should enjoy the same tax benefit as those, who, equally legitimately, contribute to political parties.
In my opinion, the government must remedy the situation as quickly as possible. Most charitable organizations operate thanks to the many volunteers who work there for nothing. I take this opportunity to pay tribute to and congratulate our many fellow Canadians who volunteer body and soul, with often very limited means, to help attenuate the effects of the problems affecting our society such as poverty, violence and suicide among the young, to name but these few.
Charitable organizations operate in a variety of sectors. There are fundraising activities and help for victims of natural catastrophes such as the ice storm and the floods of the Saguenay and of the Red River in Manitoba, for example.
In the fight against poverty, there is United Way and the many other volunteer action centres we have in our various ridings.
There are services helping young people. I pay tribute to the workers at houses for youth, drop in centres to help young people find a job, and cadet, scout and guide troops.
There are also fundraising and volunteer work for hospitals and seniors' residences. Fundraising for such foundations as the Muscular Dystrophy Foundation, the Heart and Stroke Foundation and the Fondation Enfant-Soleil, which held its telethon yesterday. I would like at this point to thank all those who, each according to their means, made the telethon such a success.
Funds are being raised for university research and various school organizations.
Charitable organizations are involved with young people, handicapped people, municipal libraries, museums, leisure parks and summer camps, among other things. I want to take this opportunity to salute service clubs such as the Optimist Club, the Lions, the Knights of Columbus, the Daughters of Isabel and the senior citizens clubs that organize meaningful activities for young people, the elderly, and underprivileged families.
Raising the tax deduction would encourage donors to invest more in charities to help them meet their humanitarian and philanthropic goals, especially since these donors are their main source of funding.
Speaking of donors, I would like to mention some telling statistics.
In Canada, in 1996, there were over 80,000 registered charities, 14,000 of them in Quebec, that received over $4 billion, including $457 million in Quebec, from 5,451,860 donors, 1,255,773 of them in Quebec. In 1996, the total number of donors was 5,461,860, compared to 5,460,730 in 1992.
How can we explain the levelling, if not the net drop in the number of donors? I submit this is the result of a charitable tax deduction which is not enough of an incentive. The government must review the tax deduction for contributions to registered charities and make it more appealing for donors to take a more active part in funding these organizations.
My colleagues from the Bloc and I will vote in favour of the motion.