Finance committee  I think it's instrumental to understanding the decision process, because what happened in this instance is no different from what happens in all other instances where the elected government announces that it intends to table legislation, if Parliament approves, to modify existing

Finance committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. In this instance, when a decision is made to release that announcement, we want to make sure that the announcement reflects the decision of the government, that it is technically accurate, and that it is respectful of the role of Canadian institutions, incl

Finance committee  Maybe I can take this one. Mr. Chair, I think the question goes somewhat in the same direction as the previous one. It seems to be related to the nature of the advice provided to the government. I don't think it would be appropriate for us to go into any detail as to the advice

Finance committee  I would maintain my answer, that effectively it would not be for me to say, for instance, what measure has been considered by cabinet, which would potentially become a cabinet confidence. I don't think I'm at liberty to say whether following the commitment made in 2019 or in the

Finance committee  Thank you. I can take that one. We had an early estimate when we introduced these deferrals. Overall, we estimated that there would be about $85 billion in debt deferred. It is not really possible now to assess the implications and how many Canadians and businesses actually t

Finance committee  I can answer this question. Thank you, Mr. Chair. For the time being, the program parameters have been extended and clarified until mid-March. At this time, in the case of a January request, the reference period may be January 2020. This is therefore still before the moment whe

Finance committee  I will take that question. First, as to the total of the CEWS that has been used to pay dividends or to do share buybacks, we do not have that estimate, primarily because we don't have that information right now. That would require access to tax returns and financial statements

Finance committee  I am explaining why we see these outcomes—

Finance committee  —based on the design, and I'm explaining why that design was chosen that way. That's the extent of my comment.

Finance committee  I'm not speculating on what the department is doing now or what the department is considering on that aspect. I was just clarifying the reason this is observed now.

Finance committee  What the various changes that have been made to this program confirm is that the government is attentive, in an ongoing manner, to any gaps that may exist with respect to support to businesses and individuals. This is obviously still a consideration as one of the gaps that has be

Finance committee  I'm saying the government has never stopped considering how best to adjust the various support programs to make sure that businesses and individuals are supported to the best of the government's ability.

Finance committee  I can answer the question, with your permission. I would like to clarify the way in which tax collection agreements work. The Canada Revenue Agency estimates the provincial tax base in order to estimate the money due to each province. The money that goes to the provinces is base

Finance committee  I don't have the answer to that question at hand. The underlying question is whether there is an international definition of a tax haven. There really is no such definition. The countries of the European Union may have their own list of a limited number of countries, depending

Finance committee  Maybe I can answer. I will give you some context. I think it would be useful. Canada is a signatory to approximately 120 international tax treaties and information exchange agreements. Close to a third of those agreements contain clauses that, in certain situations, may allow t