Mr. Speaker, I find it a little sad that the member would suggest that if parents really believe in this it does not really matter if there are financial penalties applied because they are doing what they believe so that is a lot better than money in the bank.
I am sorry, that certainly is not good enough. Parents also value being able to put a roof over their children's heads, feed them milk, clothe them and make sure they have opportunities to develop their skills and abilities through training, through recreation, through the kinds of things we do in society.
If the member is on the track that discrimination in the tax system is fine because they have the intrinsic emotional reward of doing what they think is best, surely he is joking.
We have a government that unfortunately does take this attitude. For example, the government starts clawing back the child tax benefit when income exceeds as little as under $26,000. The CCTB supplement is phased right out when the family income exceeds just under $21,000. Imagine trying to raise a family on $21,000, but this government seems to feel we do not need this child tax benefit supplement, which it is so proud of, if we earn over $21,000.
The member who just asked the silly question about the reward of looking after children being far bigger than something financial said on July 22, 1998: “The bold reality is that our Income Tax Act does discriminate against families that choose to provide direct parental care”. This same member proposed that Ottawa pay parents who make this choice $50 a week. Clearly he does not believe his own rhetoric that somehow there is no financial dimension to this choice. I suggest he abandon that nonsense right away.