Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Lévis—Lotbinière.
First off I would like to point out to the government that many employees at the Jonquière tax centre fear that their centre will be sacrificed in favour of the one in Shawinigan. Their level of concern following yesterday’s announcement of a new, larger, modern building, has increased tenfold.
I would also like to remind my colleagues that, despite the Prime Minister's promise to build a respectful relationship with federal public servants, the fact remains that negotiations for CRA employees’ next collective agreement are at a standstill. That is another broken promise, and another mistake made by the Liberal government.
Conservatives keep their promises. That is why, in the first term of a Conservative government, we will introduce a single tax return after negotiating with Quebec, while maintaining employment levels at the Gilles-Marceau building in Jonquière.
I therefore support the motion introduced by my colleague, the hon. member for Richmond—Arthabaska, which asks the government to work in tandem with the Quebec government to introduce a single tax return.
The Conservative Party is the party that is most attentive to the provinces and regions. We believe in the importance of good, stable jobs and the benefits of decentralizing the economy in favour of the regions.
Come tax time, the Canada Revenue Agency employs almost 1,000 people at the Jonquière tax centre in the riding next to mine. A number of these brave workers live in my riding and studied at Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, also located in my riding.
Yesterday, the members of the Saguenay city council ratified a resolution asking the Premier of Quebec to formally commit to maintaining current employment levels at the Jonquière tax centre should Quebec introduce a single tax return.
Although I appreciate the level of confidence of the members of the Saguenay city council, with a newly elected Conservative government attentive to Quebeckers’ needs in October 2019, there will still be work to be done.
The motion asks the government to work in tandem with the Quebec government to introduce a single tax return.
The process will have to be negotiated, and will be implemented gradually. The Conservative Party undertakes to harness the expertise of the Canada Revenue Agency and ensure that the transition does not involve any job losses in Quebec’s regions.
To be even more clear, the level of employment at the Gilles-Marceau building in Jonquière will be maintained. My leader, a real honest leader who takes his responsibilities, has said so. Public service jobs will not be eliminated. We need public servants to ensure that our federal laws are upheld. We can also make more effective use of the people who work for the federal government. Those who are currently working on processing Quebeckers' federal tax returns might work on something else instead.
Employees of the Jonquière tax centre and the Chicoutimi tax service office are skilled and for the most part bilingual.
These employees are also model citizens who are engaged in democracy and involved in the community whether by contributing to the United Way, promoting blood and plasma drives, or making donations to soup kitchens. They work hard and will not be out of work.
However, in light of our deficit situation and our government's reckless spending, we have to be responsible and ensure that none of the work is duplicated.
It is also important to point out that it is hard to find skilled labour. There is a reason the Government of Quebec would like to have the more than 5,000 CRA employees working in Quebec for the province.
However, we believe that the Public Service of Canada will always need its 5,000-plus competent employees who work for the Canada Revenue Agency in Quebec. Those jobs are there to stay.
The Canada Revenue Agency's mission is to administer tax and benefits programs, and to ensure compliance on behalf of governments across Canada, thereby contributing to the ongoing economic and social well-being of Canadians. It has a very broad and important mission.
Right now there are workload duplications because of the two tax returns, but there will be no shortage of work with a single tax return.
All Canadians will benefit from this new efficiency on the part of the CRA, because the agency ensures compliance across Canada and administers benefit programs, such as the Canada child benefit and the disability tax credit.
The government will be able to allocate more resources without increasing its spending in order to simplify life for all Canadians, improve the CRA's services and fight tax evasion.
These new financial resources, obtained without any increase in government spending, will open up new opportunities for the CRA and will result in better jobs in terms of employment stability and wage security.
Of course, this will not reduce the cost of the accounting software or the accountant's services. However, this measure will make life easier for Quebeckers.
Who can explain why the income reported in box A of my RL-1 slip is not the same as that reported in box 4 of my T4? Why are business-use-of-home expenses not calculated in the same way for the Quebec return and the federal return?
Unlike the Liberals, who will have to increase Quebeckers' and Canadians' taxes to manage their spending spree, the Conservatives are looking for solutions so they can do more without increasing government spending and reduce the tax burden on families.
Quebec families would save hundreds of dollars if the Government of Quebec would adopt the federal government's definition of income and stop collecting tax on the taxable benefit consisting of the employer's contribution to health and dental insurance.
We want to make life easier for Canadians and Quebeckers. We want to responsibly manage government spending. We want to reduce the tax burden on Quebec families. A Conservative government would sit down with the province's representatives and have a constructive discussion to make this request a reality.
The Conservatives respect provincial jurisdictions and have full confidence in provincial institutions. There is already an agreement with the province concerning the administration of the GST.
Quebec is the only province in Canada where people have to fill out two tax returns. That is a major irritant for Quebeckers and we, the Conservatives, are the only ones showing any leadership on this issue. We want to correct this situation.
The Liberal government and the NDP are being irresponsible by wrongly raising the spectre of job losses. As I said throughout my speech, they should instead be focusing on listening to the provinces, simplifying life for Quebeckers, improving the Canada Revenue Agency's services, fighting tax evasion, and maintaining stable, good-quality jobs at the Jonquière and Shawinigan tax centres.
In closing, I would like to remind members that the principle underlying the Canadian Confederation is that of a contract between the provinces for the management of common interests. It is founded on the power of the provinces.
The Conservatives have always understood that principle. They will continue to decentralize and to listen to the provinces, particularly Quebec. We learned through our “Listening to Quebeckers" tour that a single tax return is a priority. A Conservative government would begin negotiations with the Government of Quebec and make that a reality.