Mr. Speaker, one of the things about this budget is what I think of as the lack in the opportunity to plug one of the most egregious tax loopholes out there. What I am talking about is what is called tax motivated expatriation, which is in fact the transferring of money offshore to tax havens, whereby companies can avoid paying their fair share of taxes in Canada.
I sense that the Conservatives are generally sympathetic and think this practice should be stopped. It was used most notably by the former prime minister when Canada Steamship Lines was set up in the only tax haven left. The Liberals tore up all the tax treaties except for the one haven where Canada Steamship Lines happened to reside.
If the Conservatives did not see fit to plug that tax loophole in this budget, would my colleague at least agree that companies that take advantage of these tax havens should not be able to get contracts from the federal government while they are taking advantage of this tax fugitive situation?