Mr. Speaker, even told with conviction, a lie is still a lie. I was not the first one to raise the alarm on this issue. The Auditor General mentioned it in her 2001 report. Even if a study was carried out in 1995, with the way things change, the problem might have gotten worse.
Just because something was done in 1995 does not mean that nothing should have been done in 2001 after the release of the Auditor General's report. She herself made the following recommendation:
The Canada Customs and Revenue Agency should continue to be vigilant in ensuring that tax treaties are not used inappropriately to reduce Canadian tax and, if necessary, should seek legislative or treaty changes to protect Canada's tax base.
It is not me but the Auditor General who said so. That is why I find the comments made by the parliamentary secretary irresponsible. Mind you, I have come to expect this of him since being appointed finance critic for the Bloc Quebecois.
This very serious issue is being considered by the OECD and should be raised at the meeting of the Monetary and Financial Committee of the International Monetary Fund and at the meeting of the Development Committee of the World Bank, which the current finance minister will be attending over the weekend. If anyone here is being irresponsible, it is the members opposite.