House of Commons Hansard #83 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was information.

Topics

Modernizing Animal Protections ActPrivate Members' Business

7:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Assistant Deputy Speaker Liberal Anthony Rota

All those opposed will please say nay.

Modernizing Animal Protections ActPrivate Members' Business

7:40 p.m.

Some hon. members

Nay.

Modernizing Animal Protections ActPrivate Members' Business

7:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Assistant Deputy Speaker Liberal Anthony Rota

In my opinion the nays have it.

And five or more members having risen:

Pursuant to Standing Order 93, the recorded division stands deferred until Wednesday, October 5, immediately before the time provided for private members' business.

A motion to adjourn the House under Standing Order 38 deemed to have been moved.

Canada Revenue AgencyAdjournment Proceedings

7:40 p.m.

NDP

Guy Caron NDP Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House to continue the discussion we began in question period on September 23. I had asked the Minister of National Revenue a question about the infamous Bahamas Papers, the leaked documents from the Bahamas.

We learned that Senator Eaton was very surprised to see her name listed as a director on the board of a company set up as an equity firm in the Bahamas. She was surprised because she had no idea that that was the case.

This raises two serious problems regarding certain countries considered tax havens, including the Bahamas. The first is the extremely strict bank secrecy. The second is the secrecy regarding the information related to businesses set up as equity firms in those countries.

It is extremely difficult to obtain any information on the bank records or any records identifying the directors of companies set up as equity firms in those countries.

I had asked the minister a question about the famous tax information exchange agreements that Canada has signed. We have signed 21 since 2008, if my memory serves me well. These agreements are supposed to give us greater access to this information. We are given the impression that, with these agreements, we can just ask the tax authorities of those countries for information about Canadian citizens who are supposedly hiding their money or who might use the tax system of those countries for tax evasion or aggressive tax avoidance. The problem is that these agreements do not facilitate any exchange of information, far from it.

What is interesting is that these agreements have gained popularity since the OECD established a grey list of tax havens. It created a template for this type of agreement that was supposed to put an end to the secrecy of banks and even the excessive secrecy of corporations. In order to be taken off the list, a country had to sign these agreements.

That was not too difficult. The Cayman Islands, which were on this list, signed 18 agreements in two years. In general these were agreements the country signed with other tax havens so it would eventually be taken off the list. This shows just how meaningless these agreements are.

As I said, Canada has signed 21 agreements so far. Are we talking about agreements concluded with the United States or with European countries, such as France or Germany? No, these agreements were concluded with Anguilla, the Netherlands Antilles, our first treaty, Aruba, the Bahamas, Bahrain, Bermuda, Brunei, and so forth.

Most of these countries are considered tax havens. Canada continues to sign agreements that are utterly ineffective, so much so that when there is a leak like the Bahamas papers, some people are listed as directors without their knowledge.

What I wanted to know when I asked my question, which was not answered to my satisfaction, was whether the Canadian government was going to review the effectiveness of its agreements. Unfortunately, the minister simply responded by reading the notes she usually reads. She talked about the famous $444 million that will eventually be invested, but that does not in any way answer the serious question I asked.

Canada Revenue AgencyAdjournment Proceedings

7:45 p.m.

Bourassa Québec

Liberal

Emmanuel Dubourg LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Revenue

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to answer my colleague's question.

It is true that, recently, we have heard a lot of talk about KPMG, the Panama Papers, and now the Bahamas. These matters all have to do with international tax evasion or avoidance.

My colleague spoke about various treaties that seek to prevent double taxation. To give him a specific answer, I want to tell him about what the Canada Revenue Agency is doing to combat aggressive international tax avoidance and tax evasion. My colleague spoke about the unprecedented investment of $444 million. The CRA is using that funding to acquire the tools it needs to crack down on tax fraud.

The government is also working with international partners by participating in joint efforts and sharing intelligence so that it can go after tax cheats. In addition, the agency is using that additional funding to escalate and better target its activities to ensure compliance with tax laws, and it will report to Canadians on its progress frequently and transparently. These actions will benefit the middle class and ensure that Canada has a fair tax system.

This new funding, which we announced last spring, will enable the CRA to hire additional tax experts for a five-year period to scrutinize multinational corporations that use tax avoidance structures and to conduct audits of wealthy, high-risk individuals. The new staff will include not only auditors, but also economists, lawyers, and other experts. The CRA will therefore have highly qualified individuals with the diverse range of skills needed to go after complicated schemes designed to escape detection.

The CRA will also tackle more files by using sophisticated business information, as well as the expertise of experts from various disciplines.

In addition, the CRA recently created three other audit teams to focus on large corporations, and it will create additional teams next year. The minister recently signed the multilateral agreement concluded by the appropriate authorities on country-by-country reporting, which compels multinational corporations to report their global banking activities. This international effort allows tax authorities to follow financial transactions all around the globe.

In closing, the CRA is currently conducting 750 audits and 20 criminal investigations focused on individuals who own property abroad. Those are just some of the actions the Canada Revenue Agency is taking to combat tax evasion and international tax avoidance.

Canada Revenue AgencyAdjournment Proceedings

7:50 p.m.

NDP

Guy Caron NDP Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC

Mr. Speaker, Canada signs tax treaties with some countries ostensibly to avoid double taxation, but what actually happens is double non-taxation. Instead of enabling us to collect a portion of the tax, a treaty such as the one with Barbados exempts a company that pays a paltry 2.5% to Barbados from paying tax in Canada.

Yes, we need to take a closer look at whether these tax treaties are working, but my argument was about tax information exchange agreements. As we have seen, such agreements, particularly with the Bahamas, are absolutely useless. Why? Because to get information from the countries with which we have treaties, we need information that quite simply cannot be had by those not already privy to it.

It is a bit like having to have all of the evidence before asking for more evidence. Consequently, I am asking the Canadian government to take a look at how well its treaties and conventions are working because they appear to be patently ineffective.

Canada Revenue AgencyAdjournment Proceedings

7:50 p.m.

Liberal

Emmanuel Dubourg Liberal Bourassa, QC

Mr. Speaker, in the last session, my colleague and I sat here and discussed international tax evasion at length. What I can say is that this is the first time that the Canada Revenue Agency has had this kind of money to combat tax evasion and international tax avoidance and to correct this situation.

My colleague is also here; he is aware of the steps that are taken. I would remind him that, insofar as the exchange of information and the integrity of the system are concerned, we want people to understand that protecting personal information is extremely important to this government. We have some exchange of information treaties and agreements with such countries as the United States that date back to 1942. Extraordinary measures are taken at all times to protect information integrity.

Canada Revenue AgencyAdjournment Proceedings

7:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Assistant Deputy Speaker Liberal Anthony Rota

The motion to adjourn the House is now deemed to have been adopted. Accordingly the House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 10 a.m. pursuant to Standing Order 24(1).

(The House adjourned at 7:54 p.m.)