Mr. Speaker, the hon. member for Wild Rose is right. One thing the Liberal government tries to do sometimes is pretend it has some sort of monopoly on compassion. That is simply not the case, particularly when the government does everything it can to strengthen the ability of the Canadian Customs and Revenue Agency to wring every last penny out of the taxpayer.
Look how complicated the Canadian tax code is. In a lot of cases, when taxpayers get into trouble, it is not because they are trying to cheat the system or doing something dishonest. It is because they cannot afford to hire the tax lawyers and tax accountants required to fill out the tax form. The fact is we have a tax code that is too complicated and a government that is too hungry for tax revenue.
At the end of the day, average Canadian taxpayers are very frightened when they receive a letter from the Canadian Customs and Revenue Agency saying that they will be audited or that there will be an investigation. They do not have the legions of lawyers and accountants that the government and its agencies have. It is very difficult for taxpayers to defend themselves against the tax department or the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency.
I share the concern of the hon. member about this. I have seen, as I am certain he has seen, among constituents individual cases of this type of abusive behaviour by the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency and the absolutely unfair treatment of people.
A psychological evaluation of the impact of various types of correspondence was done a few years ago. It said that a letter from the government saying that the individual would be audited had about the same psychological impact as a letter informing the person that a relative had died. Perhaps there are relatives that we would probably sacrifice before we would have a Revenue Canada audit, but that is another story.
The fact is that to be notified of a Revenue Canada audit or a Canada Customs and Revenue Agency audit is one of the most frightening things a citizen can experience. I share those concerns with the hon. member.