Finance committee  Thank you, Ferne. Government investment in our institutions is critical. Another important piece of the puzzle is tax credits. Our second recommendation to you is to increase the value of the Canadian film or video production tax credit, or the CFVPTC, and the production service

Finance committee  Since 1982.

Finance committee  You should tell your small business colleagues that income tax averaging could advantage them as well. It shouldn't be limited to just performers or artists; it should apply to all small business owners, to accountants and lawyers and anyone who has fluctuating or lumpy income.

Finance committee  Well, knowing something about the finance department officials and the government then and now, the governments and the finance department like employees. They don't like independent contractors, which our members and others are. So they're attempting to force everybody into the

Finance committee  Sure. Thank you for the question. Eliminating the grind means that under the federal tax credit system they take into account what has already been paid in terms of the provincial tax credits and then deduct it from the federal tax credit, so there is a grind-down effect. If th

Finance committee  Yes. Quebec currently has income averaging. They've reinstated income averaging. It's been extremely beneficial to performers and other independent contractors in Quebec, a significant benefit. Quebec also provides a tax benefit to artists, as other countries such as Ireland do,

Finance committee  We're going through a tremendous transition right now from the analog system to the digital system, and the business models have not yet been developed, they're not yet formed. Companies, whether they're advertisers or producers, have not yet been able to figure out how to make m

Human Resources committee  On November 3 we were pleased to see the human resources minister, the Honourable Diane Finley, table a bill to extend various EI benefits to self-employed Canadians. If passed, Bill C-56, the Fairness for the Self-Employed Act, would extend special EI benefits, including materni

Human Resources committee  Well, there are some similarities with fishers and actors, they say. By their nature, engagements in film, TV, recorded media jurisdiction, stage, and so on are infrequent. It's just the nature of the business. We don't call it employment; we're very careful to say it's not an

Human Resources committee  Yes, but that doesn't mean you're not working, right? You're preparing. That's exactly it.

Human Resources committee  You're working out with your colleagues.

Human Resources committee  Yes. It would be difficult, because there is virtually no employment between the actual engagements, but let's find another way of doing this. Let's look at a different form of eligibility.

Human Resources committee  We'd prefer it to be mandatory.

Human Resources committee  Yes, mandatory. It makes sense. But anyway, we're happy that the government has introduced the bill. Thank you for introducing the bill, and we're urging the MPs to pass it.

Human Resources committee  Come on, we haven't canvassed every member here. What we're talking about is based upon our experience in the industry, which is considerable.