Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois will vote in favour of this motion. We will explain why to the hon. members from the governing party.
For 30 years I have been involved in sports locally and internationally. I have a few words for the hon. members from the governing party. I want to know how much money Olympic athletes receive to be able to train year round. After deductions, they can barely make ends meet.
The purpose of this bill is not to increase the amount of money that goes to elite athletes such as Despaties, Heymans or others who are currently sponsored, who receive money from sponsors and file annual income tax returns. I am talking about the up and coming athletes, those who are at the developmental level. My focus is on them this evening. That is why we will support this bill.
It is the parents who pay for these athletes, who get up every morning at 6 a.m. to train. These athletes do not get a break on the weekend either. Sometimes a foundation might be set up to help them improve and get a little further, foundations such as the Gold Medal Club in Montreal, the athlete's fund in Abitibi-Témiscamingue and others. However, these athletes should be able to get a tax break for the money they receive from these foundations. It is totally unfair and unacceptable for this not to be the case.
The tax break would be $8,000 in addition to the $8,000 that every citizen in Canada is entitled to claim. That way, our athletes, whether at the elite or the developmental stage, especially those who show great promise, can have $16,000 of income that is not taxable. That is the very minimum.
I will read the bill as presented:
income for the year, not exceeding $8,000, received by an athlete—
If the hon. member agrees and if Parliament allows, I would add the word coach because they have coaches.
—received by an athlete from a non-profit club, society or association—
The athletes do not get help from major companies. It is the little regions and the little villages that end up creating a foundation when a local athlete is suddenly thrust into the spotlight, so that they can help him get to the Olympics, the Commonwealth Games, the Pan-Am Games or even a world championship. When such a foundation is created, the athlete ought to be able to deduct what he received from it on his income tax return. Otherwise, this is totally unfair.
The government tells us that it has programs available to help our athletes. It does in fact have programs to help those at the elite level. But those at the developmental level receive a mere $900 a month for accommodation, living expenses . We know that athletes need to travel to meets. I know of some badminton players who will be in the Ottawa region this weekend and will have travelled from as far away as Abitibi, the North, or Yellowknife. These competitors have had to pay their own way and they do not get any money back.
We accept the solution the hon. member has come up with. I think that Canadians would agree to giving our athletes a tax break on the first $8,000 of their income.
I think that is a bare minimum when we look at how much it costs for housing, food, clothing, sports gear and tuition fees. We will define the term athlete. Sport Canada already has one and we will apply the same one. They are just trying to create a problem where there is no need of one.
With respect, we are going to support the hon. member's proposal, and we hope that this bill can get passed as quickly as possible. We must not forget that we have the Vancouver-Whistler Olympics coming up in 2010. Our athletes are in full preparation mode already and we know they are going to be there. They must be helped and this is one way of helping them.