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.