Lost his last election, in 2004, with 35% of the vote.
Tourism Industry June 9th, 1995
Mr. Speaker, my question concerns Canada's tourism industry.
Over the last number of years Canada has lost a large part of its tourism business from all over the world, but in particular, from the United States.
Is the current campaign having any effect on our tourist business and at what cost?
Petitions June 8th, 1995
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition signed by constituents of Victoria-Haliburton from such places as Bobcaygeon, Lindsay, Woodville, Dunsford and Downeyville.
The petitioners call on Parliament to request the CBC to withdraw its coverage of the Paul Bernardo trail.
Child Support Payments May 29th, 1995
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Justice.
Can the minister please inform this House as to when he intends to introduce proposed changes to the child support payment system that would prevent parents from neglecting their responsibilities for their children?
Underground Economy May 18th, 1995
Mr. Speaker, it is always so nice to follow the doom and gloom party.
It is a pleasure to speak today on Motion No. 382 introduced by the member for Mississauga South. Basically the motion calls on the government to consider establishing initiatives to address the massive underground economy that exists in Canada today.
The issue is of concern to me and should be of concern to all Canadians. I have even managed to address the matter while I was vice-chairman of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts. I had the opportunity to ask one witness, a deputy minister at Revenue Canada, about Canada's underground economy. He said that a lot of the situations which caused the underground economy were for elected representatives to discuss and address. This is what we are doing today. My colleague from Mississauga South has proposed ways to address the problem I spoke about before the committee.
The underground economy has a great deal of strength in Canada. The exact size of lost revenue is unknown, with estimates ranging from $20 billion to $140 billion a year. What is known is that each time someone participates in the underground economy money to help pay for our programs such as health care or education is lost and will most likely never be recovered.
It is safe to say that we are taking money from ourselves by being part of the underground economy. We must ask ourselves what is causing this type of economy, one the Minister of Finance does not want to see grow. It could be the threat of taxes. It could be the problems with the Department of National Revenue. It could be the perception that the system is bogged down in bureaucratic red tape. It could be a lot of things. Is it the hated GST? For whatever reason it is real. The underground economy is alive and well.
I hear stories in my riding of Victoria-Haliburton about welding shops which have gone out of business and now operate out of a truck and only collect cash. I hear of car body shops that only deal in cash, buy their materials in cash and pay their employees in cash. It has been said that there are restaurants which pay students cash and tell them not to report it. Some people have told me of contractors who continually give two quotes, a quote for cash and a quote for the legitimate way. Furthermore, some people have actually removed their business listings from the phone book so they can work in cash.
I know a lot of these people were never tax cheaters in their lives, but they may have been forced into operating this way or feel they have to operate this way because they have been doing it for so long and penalties would be too harsh if they come out and operate honestly.
One part of the motion is designed to address the situation precisely. The second part of the motion is designed to give some relief or limited forgiveness on interest and other penalties payable when a taxpayer voluntarily declares previously undeclared income.
Be honest and you won't be punished is the message in the motion. Another part of the motion suggests educating the public about the problem and encouraging its participation in solving the situation.
Our tax system is based on taxpayers voluntarily filing and paying their taxes. It is probably the least expensive way for the federal government to collect taxes owing. However there are some who do not pay which gives some businesses an unfair advantage. In the long run, if every Canadian paid their fair share, we would be further ahead. Most important, we would be paying in a far fairer way.
Nothing is more frustrating for small businesses such as contractors bidding for a job to lose the bid because the competition put in a low bid and an under the table bid.
Another part of the information campaign deals with ensuring people realize the federal government, in particular the Department of National Revenue, is addressing the problem of the underground economy. In the future more people will be exposed for contributing to the underground economy and once caught there are some serious consequences to consider. Furthermore the information campaign must stress that jobs are lost when the underground economy flourishes.
Canada must begin to realize that doing things above board is in the best interest of everyone involved. At the same time this part of the motion calls upon us as a government to help to create an atmosphere in which doing things above board is acceptable. There are other ways to encourage people to do things above board and the third part of the motion touches on them.
The third and last part of the motion deals with giving tax credits to people who are doing home improvements or renovations. The idea is to diminish the two-quote system which already exists. It also creates a paper trail that can serve as a primary vehicle for the information campaign I mentioned earlier.
We as a government must make sure that society is not punished for being honest. We must create an economy in which hard work and dedication are rewarded. We do not want to send out a message that it is all right to operate in the underground economy because everyone else is doing it.
One of our priorities when we were elected was to focus on jobs and growth. The motion helps to maintain that message and I urge all members to support the idea of the hon. member for Mississauga South.
Tree Plan Canada May 12th, 1995
Mr. Speaker, this week has been designated National Forest Week. I rise today to recognize the significant contribution of a school from my riding that has participated in a tree planting program called Tree Plan Canada.
This group of grade 7 and 8 students from Scott Young Elementary School in Omemee have been active participants in planting over 100 trees, 1,200 seedlings and about 500 shrubs on their school property last year.
I congratulate these students for their hard work and dedication to the maintenance of forests in Canada and I am honoured to have some of these students join us in the public gallery today.
Congratulations and keep up the excellent work for the future preservation of our forests.
International Markets May 10th, 1995
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Finance. Throughout its history Canada has benefited from periodic infusions of capital investment from countries across the globe. In recent years however, foreign investors have viewed Canadian markets with some reluctance.
Can the minister inform the House what is being done to improve the attractiveness of Canada to foreign investors?
Tobacco May 3rd, 1995
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Health.
Some interest groups have been claiming that the tobacco tax decrease has resulted in an increase in tobacco consumption. Other parties have been claiming there has been a reduction in smoking rates.
Could the Minister of Health advise the House whether or not Canadians are consuming more tobacco?
Budget Implementation Act, 1995 April 26th, 1995
Is that not interesting? They support them. No, 6.8 per cent.
The other one I really liked: Do you believe that your member of Parliament should opt out of the pension program provided for members of Parliament? Yes, 28 per cent; no, 82 per cent.
What are the people of Canada saying about the budget? They are saying that they support it. What are they saying about members' pension plans? They are saying that they support those cuts.
So the doom and gloom from across the way is just that, doom and gloom. I am not sorry we have taken the Reform agenda away from them. It does not bother me at all.
There are 205 rookies in Parliament who came here to make a difference. This budget made a difference. The Liberal Party made a difference, and we will continue to provide good government for Canadian people, which is what they asked for and what they elected us for and what we are doing.
Budget Implementation Act, 1995 April 26th, 1995
Madam Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise to bring some reality to the fact that the Canadian public is in tune with and in favour of the recent budget.
At a recent meeting in Haliburton I had the pleasure of speaking to a group from the chambers of commerce from Haliburton to the Quebec border. Most of them are managers, some operate chambers of commerce, are CEOs and so forth. They agreed that for the first time since the 1940s there was actually a budget cut, that it was not just a freeze, it was not something that would be taken off at the next election, it was not something that was going to change. It was actually an alternate course the government has decided to embark on. They applauded that.
In researching the budget in order to speak to the chamber of commerce and find something to talk about that I thought would be of interest to them, I did look at the reduction of business subsidies. These are dear to most of our hearts. We all believe that businesses should not be financed by federal governments. We have talked about that many times.
A key principle of the 1995 budget, as the Minister of Finance said, was to redesign the role of government in the economy to fit the size of the pocketbook and the priorities of our people. The decision dramatically reduces subsidies to businesses and shows how that principle is at work.
The simple fact is that subsidies often did more harm to businesses than help. It is a problem business leaders themselves have often pointed to. This was confirmed in the 1994 OECD job studies, which said that subsidies tend to operate in exactly the opposite way from what is needed: they slow rather than stimulate adjustment, they discourage rather than encourage innovation, and they tend to become permanent.
That is why the budget cuts business subsidies by 60 per cent, from $3.8 billion last year to $1.5 billion by 1997-98. Areas where subsidies will drop sharply include agriculture and transportation. Again, we can no longer afford subsidies that were designed decades ago and that today are actually undercutting adaptation, diversification, and competitiveness.
Western Grain Transportation Act subsidies are being eliminated, for a savings of $2.6 billion over five years. But because of the scope of this change there will be transition measures. For example, we will make a one-time payment of $1.6 billion to prairie farmer landowners and invest a further $300 million to help establish a more efficient grain handling and transportation system.
As well, in line with the recent decision of federal and provincial agriculture ministers, we will develop a core national whole farm package. This shared cost program will replace current programs based on individual commodities. This will encourage innovation and diversification while producing a 30 per cent reduction in federal contributions to agricultural safety nets.
The Atlantic freight subsidies will also be eliminated, for five-year savings of $500 million. This again will be balanced by a five-year transition program, including helping to modernize the highway system in Atlantic Canada and eastern Quebec.
Of course our cuts to subsidies extend far beyond agriculture and transportation. At Industry Canada subsidies will fall by half, from $525 million in 1994-95 to $264 million in three years. Remaining spending will focus on initiatives in high growth sectors and in partnerships with the private sector.
A new role for the regional development agencies will see them focusing on small and medium sized enterprises. This assistance will rely on loans and repayable contributions rather than direct subsidies. As a result, subsidies from these agencies, the western diversification, the Federal Office of Regional Development for Quebec, the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, will drop from $700 million to $234 million.
Subsidies to cultural industries are also being reduced. This includes an eight per cent reduction in the postal subsidy, which reduces mailing costs for certain books and magazines.
As well, we are eliminating the Public Utilities Income Tax Transfer Act, which returns to provinces the taxes paid by privately owned utilities. As a result, major energy subsidies will virtually disappear, dropping from $410 million now to $8 million.
These subsidy cuts are vital components in restoring Canada's fiscal health. We also recognize that there are times and places where governments can and should assist the private sector in today's fast changing global environment. For example, the government will continue to play an appropriate role in supporting exports for companies in sectors facing intense international competition.
The government will be working with Canada's banks between now and the fall to elaborate meaningful benchmarks regarding small business lending.
A survey in my riding provided overwhelming support for the budget. In fact most would have gone further. Eighty per cent approved the cuts made and are looking for Canada to live within the fiscal constraints of the reality of our income.
The results of my survey include to this date 1,167 people as of yesterday. One of the questions was: Do you agree with the government department spending cuts announced in the 1995 budget? That was a very simple question. The response was no, 18 per cent; yes, 73.6 per cent.
Do you believe the government spending cuts went too far? Yes, 8.7 per cent; no, 83.9 per cent. Do you believe that the government's spending cuts did not go far enough? Yes, 70 per cent; no, 19.6 per cent. Do you support the proposed changes to MPs' pensions? The survey indicated what those changes were. Yes, 90.9 per cent.
Petitions April 25th, 1995
Mr. Speaker, I also wish to present a petition asking that sexual orientation not be included in any new hate crimes legislation. I endorse this petition. It is from the riding of Victoria-Haliburton in Ontario.