Economic and Fiscal Update Implementation Act, 2021  My numbers are from October 31, 2021, and the situation may have gotten worse since then, but the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, or CFIB, states that more than one-quarter of SMEs in Quebec may not make it through 2022. Recovery is not a given, and it is not easy. Does my colleague agree that the criteria for partial loan forgiveness under the Canada emergency business account could be made more flexible, based on certain conditions that would be determined down the road?

Human Resources committee  Good afternoon, my name is Jasmin Guénette. I am the Vice-President, National Affairs, of the CFIB, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. I am going to make today's presentation in my mother tongue, French, but I will be able to answer some of the questions in English. Before starting, I would like to thank the committee members for this invitation, of course.

Public Accounts committee  In fact, bankruptcies are still a possibility in 2022, according to a study by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, because we are not yet fully out of the situation caused by the pandemic. Not all businesses are back on track and doing well. I want to take a moment to congratulate our CFDCs, and especially executive directors Thérèse Grenier, Jocelyn Lévesque, Éric Laliberté and Nadia Bellehumeur, for their excellent work in Abitibi‑Témiscamingue.

Human Resources committee  Second, it made that announcement on the very day when we had the CFIB, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, here at the committee. With that said, my first question is for Mr. Guénette. You talked about the two announcements made by the government in the last week. The first concerned the pilot project launched in Quebec under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

Human Resources committee  I would like to welcome our witnesses for our second grouping to begin our discussion with five minutes of opening remarks, followed by questions. From the Canadian Federation of Independent Business we have Jasmin Guénette. From the Comité sectoriel de main-d'oeuvre en aérospatiale we have Madame Martel, general manager. From École des métiers de l'aérospatiale we have Monsieur Éric Dionne, director.

Economic and Fiscal Update Implementation Act, 2021  If that were not bad enough, we have seen already that the carbon tax has been quite punitive on farmers. We saw the numbers that have been put forward by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. The average farmer paid about $14,000 in the first year of the carbon tax. That went up to $45,000 last year, and this is going to go up again on April 1. What is that going to mean, moving forward?

Economic and Fiscal Update Implementation Act, 2021  The member is absolutely right that the tourism and hospitality sector has been severely hit. Tourism is number two in the economy in my area. A survey by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business shows that a massive number of businesses right across Canada have taken on severe debt just to keep going. One of the issues in travel and tourism, especially in Ontario, is that when we are running a tour, we do not always get the money until the tour goes.

Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act  Bill C-234 will provide the much needed exemptions for critical farming practices including heating and cooling of livestock barns and steam flaking. There are very real consequences to the Liberals' carbon tax. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business verified ran the numbers, and they are troubling. On average, in the first year of the Liberals' carbon tax, the average Canadian farmer was paying $14,000 a year in carbon tax.

Economic and Fiscal Update Implementation Act, 2021  We brought up the issue of business debt early on. A survey done by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, or CFIB, in December noted that more than one-quarter of businesses in Quebec might not make it through 2022. More than half of small businesses have not returned to normal sales, and the average debt of a small business in Quebec was almost $100,000, going even as high as $206,944 for a dine-in restaurant.

Business of Supply  Even if the economy recovers, they will still be in debt. There is a reason the Canadian Federation of Independent Business says that one in four SMEs could close down permanently in 2022 because they went into debt during previous waves. Small business confidence in Canada and Quebec remained especially low in January because of supply issues, the health restrictions and labour shortages.

Finance committee  A survey conducted by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business last week showed that 14% of businesses were simply thinking of declaring bankruptcy. I wouldn't go so far as to make the connection with the blockades. However, let's just say that they significantly affected morale.

Finance committee  I think we should have a few more pre‑budget consultations. For example, to date, no one from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business has appeared. I think this would be the first time we've had a pre‑budget consultations where an organization like that didn't appear. So I'm in favour of the motion.

Human Resources committee  I realize the labour shortage is hurting major sectors and businesses, as evidenced by a study from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business and today's report from the Ontario Chamber of Commerce. We all know the transportation and food service industries have been hit hard, among others. Our goal should be to conduct an impact study to determine how Canada's labour shortage in major sectors is affecting the Canadian economy.

Finance committee  Perhaps most importantly, it is very clear that Canadian firms and households believe higher inflation will last and remain uncomfortably high, given the Bank of Canada's inflation control mandate. The December survey by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, for example, finds that small and medium-sized enterprises now believe they need to raise prices by 4.6% over the next 12 months. Recent readings of this survey are the highest, by far, in relation to history.

Government Business No. 4—An Act to Provide Further Support in Response to COVID-19  We will need to monitor the spread of the omicron variant. According to a recent survey conducted by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, 58% of SME owners reported lower-than-normal sales. Like my colleague from Joliette, I can only lament the fact that a useless election delayed the implementation of these new programs.