Debates of April 30th, 2013

Report of the Auditor General of Canada

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

I have the honour to lay upon the table the spring 2013 report of the Auditor General of Canada. Pursuant to Standing Order 108(3)(g), this document is deemed to have been permanently referred to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts.

Canadian Heritage

[Rob Moore, Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 10th report of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, entitled “The Canadian Entertainment Software Industry”. Pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee requests that the government table a comprehensive response to the report.

[Rob Moore, Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 11th report of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage in relation to Bill C-266, an act to establish Pope John Paul II Day. The committee has studied the bill and has decided to report the bill back to the House without amendments.

[Andrew Cash, NDP, Davenport, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Fundy Royal for submitting the report on the entertainment software industry and for his work as chair of the heritage committee.

I would like to draw attention to the official opposition's supplementary report, particularly recommendation number 3, which deals with the temporary foreign workers program.

Both inside and outside the House of Commons yesterday, the Minister for Citizenship and Immigration tried to use as cover for his utter mismanagement of the program the entertainment software industry, one of the great new economy success stories. Our supplementary recommendation recognizes the challenges this industry may face, as do many sectors that need highly specialized workers from time to time, but cannot find them.

I want to draw attention to part of our supplementary recommendation, which states:

[The temporary foreign worker program] is failing to ensure that Canadians and permanent residents have the first opportunity for jobs that are created. Therefore, the Official Opposition insists that CIC and HRSDC only permit temporary foreign workers to fill a position when there are no Canadians or permanent residents able to fill them.

Sex Selection

[Leon Benoit, Conservative, Vegreville—Wainwright, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present this morning.

In the first, petitioners call on the House to condemn discrimination against females occurring through sex-selective pregnancy termination. CBC carried a program that indicated that when ultrasounds done in Canada determine the child to be female, the mother will abort the female. When this was brought out, all parties in the House of Commons condemned that practice.

Petitioners are calling on Parliament to condemn the practice of gender selection pregnancy termination.

Rights of the Unborn

[Leon Benoit, Conservative, Vegreville—Wainwright, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is on the definition of a human being. Petitioners note that Canada's 400-year-old definition of a human being says that a child does not become a human being until the moment of complete birth. This is in spite of the fact that science has shown something quite different. Therefore, the petitioners call on the House of Commons to confirm that every human being is recognized under Canadian law as a human being in section 223 of our Criminal Code.

Employment

[Andrew Cash, NDP, Davenport, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present today.

Recently the United Way and McMaster University presented a report that showed that up to half of all workers in Toronto could not access full-time employment. Therefore, they are working at part-time, freelance, self-employed and contract employment. These jobs come with no pensions, no benefits and no job security. In particular, the members in my community in Davenport are concerned about the lack of access to employment insurance for those who are deemed to be in precarious work.

This petition speaks to that issue and the concern my community has around it.

Nuclear Fuel Processing Licence

[Andrew Cash, NDP, Davenport, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition relates to the fact that last fall, my community in Davenport awoke to the fact that GE Hitachi has been operating a nuclear fuel processing facility in the riding. Many are very concerned. They would like to see CNSC reopen the licence, and the petition speaks to that.

Falun Gong

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present two petitions.

The first is primarily from residents of Toronto. It calls upon the government to recognize the systematic persecution of followers of Falun Dafa and Falun Gong within the People's Republic of China and to press the People's Republic of China to end these practices.

The Environment

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is from residents within my riding, from Mayne Island, Galiano Island, Saanich, North Saanich and Victoria, calling upon the government to cease and desist from the promotion of a project called the northern gateway being promoted by Enbridge. These residents of my constituency ask the government to adopt a neutral stance.

Chief Firearms Officers

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition. The petitioners are calling upon the government to replace the chief firearms offices with a civilian agency that is more responsive to the public and that applies federal law equally across the land.

Women's Rights in Pakistan

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have three petitions.

The first petition is from residents of Toronto calling upon Parliament to stand up for women's rights internationally, especially with respect to the Pakistani government, and to take appropriate steps to protect the rights of women and girls in that country.

Motor Vehicle Safety

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is from constituents who are mostly in my riding but who are also from all across Toronto. It urges the Government of Canada to make side guards mandatory on big trucks all across Canada, especially those operating within the city.

The petitioners point to the fact that the coroner's report of 1998 and the recent Ontario coroner's report have both recommended that Transport Canada introduce a regulation to require that large trucks have side guards to protect the lives of cyclists and pedestrians.

Parks Canada

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the third petition is from petitioners all across Canada asking Parks Canada to return the Rideau Canal and the Trent-Severn Waterway to 2011 service levels. They do not want to see either the hours of operation reduced or the seasons of operation shortened. They state that there are lots of Canadians and visitors who want to enjoy these waterways.

Questions on the Order Paper

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, the following questions will be answered today: Nos. 1226, 1228, 1232, 1236 and 1244.

Question No. 1226

[Merv Tweed, Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

With regard to the Goods and Services Tax, what would it cost the government, on an annual basis, to increase the rebate for school authorities to 100% from 68%?

[Shelly Glover, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, most services provided by school authorities are exempt from the goods and services tax, the GST. Exempt treatment means that school authorities do not charge GST on the exempt services they supply, but cannot claim input tax credits to recover the GST paid on inputs used to provide their exempt services. School authorities can, however, claim rebates of the otherwise unrecoverable GST paid. This rebate was set at the time of introduction of the GST to maintain a similar tax burden for the school sector as existed under the former federal sales tax. The rebate rate for school authorities is 68%.

The Tax Expenditures and Evaluations 2012 report indicates that school authorities received an estimated $360 million in GST rebates in 2012. On that basis, increasing the GST rebate for school authorities to 100% from 68% would cost an estimated $170 million annually.

School authorities have benefited from the decision of the Government of Canada to reduce the GST rate from 7% to 5% without reducing the rebate rate for school authorities. As a result, the effective GST rate on school authorities’ taxable purchases dropped from 2.24% to 1.6%.

Question No. 1228

[Merv Tweed, Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

With regard to the Goods and Services Tax, what would it cost the government, on an annual basis, to add to schedule VI of the Income Tax Act, reading materials, both printed and electronic, including in audio and video form?

[Shelly Glover, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the goods and services tax, GST, imposed under the Excise Tax Act applies to a very broad base with only a limited number of zero-rated items, such as basic groceries, prescription drugs, certain medical and assistive devices and exports. It is preferable to tax a broad base of goods and services since this allows for a more efficient and simpler tax and provides for a lower tax rate. In this regard, the government delivered on its commitment to reduce the GST rate by two percentage points, from 7% to 5%. Overall, the savings from this measure vary from year to year. It is estimated that it will provide $13.6 billion in tax savings to Canadians in 2013-14.

Reading materials are generally taxable under the GST. However, to encourage literacy, educational institutions, public libraries and non-profit groups whose primary purpose is the promotion of literacy are eligible for a full rebate of the GST on all printed books. The Tax Expenditures and Evaluations 2012 report estimates that $20 million was claimed under the GST book rebate in 2012.

Statistics Canada’s system of national accounts contains data on spending by Canadians on printed and electronic reading materials, including newspapers, periodicals and books. Based on these data, it can be expected that the cost of zero-rating those goods would be in the order of $280 million annually in forgone federal GST revenues.

Question No. 1232

[Ted Opitz, Conservative, Etobicoke Centre, ON]

With regard to the Income Tax Act, what would it cost the government, on an annual basis, to deem an amount paid on an account of an individual's tax payable equal to the amount that the individual paid during the year as membership dues to a branch of the Royal Canadian Legion or Army, Navy and Air Force Veterans in Canada Association or to a prescribed veterans' organization?

[Shelly Glover, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, this proposal would create a refundable tax credit equal to the amount that the individual paid during the year as membership dues to a branch of the Royal Canadian Legion, the Army, Navy and Air Force Veterans in Canada Association, or to a prescribed veterans’ organization.

This proposal would effectively result in the personal income tax system providing full reimbursement for the costs of annual membership dues to veterans’ organizations. This would be unique in the personal income tax system, as all other expenses eligible for tax recognition, such as child care, union and professional dues, medical expenses and tuition fees are provided tax relief through deductions or non-refundable tax credits, none of which provide the level of reimbursement of expenses contemplated under the proposal.

It is difficult to provide an accurate estimate of the cost of the proposal since the tax data do not identify members of veterans’ organizations, which can include veteran and non-veteran members. Based on the current membership of the Royal Canadian Legion and the Army, Navy and the Air Force Veterans in Canada Association and the average annual dues collected by these organizations, the estimated cost of the proposal would be about $15 million per year. However, if all 713,000 veterans in Canada were to fully benefit from claiming $50 in annual membership dues--i.e., the current maximum amount of annual membership dues collected by a branch of the Royal Canadian Legion--the cost of the proposal could be as much as $36 million per year.

Additional factors could significantly increase this cost, and these factors are difficult to estimate. The proposal would apply to any individual who pays membership dues to a veterans’ organization, and as such, significant costs could be incurred if memberships by non-veterans--e.g., family members--were also provided tax recognition. Membership data for 2012 suggest that the majority of memberships to the Royal Canadian Legion are in the “associate” and “affiliate” categories. As well, if veterans’ organizations were to increase their annual membership dues, the cost of the proposal could be higher.

Question No. 1236

[Randy Hoback, Conservative, Prince Albert, SK]

With regard to the Goods and Services Tax, what would it cost the government, on an annual basis, to add to schedule VI of the Excise Tax Act, regarding zero-rated supplies, funeral services, including coffin, headstone, or any other property relating to the funeral, burial or cremation of an individual?

[Shelly Glover, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the goods and services tax, GST, applies to a very broad base with only a limited number of zero-rated items, such as basic groceries, prescription drugs, certain medical and assistive devices and exports.

Since the establishment of the GST in 1991, funeral services, coffins, headstones, or any other property relating to the funeral, burial or cremation of an individual have generally been taxable. It should be noted that some charity-provided services are exempt.

Statistics Canada’s national income and expenditure accounts contain data on spending by Canadians on various funeral products and services, including funeral and pre-burial products, cremation and interment of human remains, grave plots and cemetery maintenance. These data include expenditures on funeral services supplied by charities, which are generally GST-exempt. Based on these data, it could be expected that the cost of zero-rating those funeral products and services could be up to $90 million annually.

Question No. 1244

[Wladyslaw Lizon, Conservative, Mississauga East—Cooksville, ON]

With regard to the protection of the environment and public health, what would it cost the government to upgrade the standards of septic systems of homes not currently connected to municipal sanitation systems to those which are currently connected?

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the construction and operating standards for residential septic and sewage systems are regulated by provincial and territorial governments. These standards, and any costs associated with upgrades, vary by jurisdiction and by municipality. To that end, Infrastructure Canada does not have any information in respect of the costs of upgrading standards for privately owned residential septic systems.

The Government of Canada has made significant investments in public waste water infrastructure, including approximately $1.8 billion through the building Canada fund and several economic action plan programs since 2007, as well as over $625 million under the gas tax fund since 2005. In addition, public waste water infrastructure will continue to be eligible under the new building Canada fund and the renewed gas tax fund as announced in budget 2013.