Mr. Speaker, during the second reading stage of debate on this bill, I asked the parliamentary secretary for revenue why this bill fails to address issues on direction and control. These are issues that the international development sector and the rest of the charitable sector have been raising for a very long time. “Direction and control” is about needless red tape piled on charitable organizations. It relates to them spending more money on lawyer fees and sending less money to the front lines. When I raised this issue on March 6 during second reading debate, the parliamentary secretary did not give me a very specific answer. He told me he would love to learn about this further. Again, this bill is a missed opportunity to address the direction and control regime that needs to be changed to strengthen opportunities for the charitable sector.
Has the member had a chance, since our last exchange on this issue, to do more research on it? He could update the House on what, if anything, the finance department is prepared to do in subsequent bills to address direction and control.