Montréal, September 3, 2015 ‒ The Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal presented its brief on the report of the Commission d’examen sur la fiscalité du Québec (Quebec taxation review commission) to Quebec’s National Assembly today. The President and CEO, Michel Leblanc, reiterated the Board of Trade’s firm support for applying recommendations from the Godbout report.
“The Commission d’examen sur la fiscalité du Québec’s work was diligent and exhaustive,” said Michel Leblanc, President and CEO of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal. “The Government of Quebec needs to commit to implementing the Commission’s recommendations as soon as possible to give Quebec a modern taxation system that benefits workers, savers and businesses.”
A reform based on fundamental economic principles
“Quebec’s tax system needs to be recalibrated to better support the foundations of economic activity,” Michel Leblanc added. “This is why the Board of Trade fully agrees with the spirit of the Godbout report, which advocates using taxes that do the least economic harm. Reducing personal and corporate income taxes, along with increasing user fees and consumer taxes and effective measures to protect low-income households, will encourage work and savings and stimulate investment. These are essential factors for reinforcing the city’s and the province’s economy.”
A reform must be approached as a whole
“The Board of Trade emphasizes the importance of taking the Commission’s report as a whole,” Mr. Leblanc said. “The Commission’s exercise was based on an important premise: proposing a no-cost reform for the government and taxpayers. While the Board of Trade regularly calls for cuts to personal and corporate taxes, and while the business community is wary about projected increases in taxes and user fees, we believe that the reform’s advantages are very real if it is applied as a whole. This is why we are calling on the government to apply the recommendations of the report in their entirety without giving in to pressures for measures to be set aside.”
Economic benefits we need to take advantage of
“The anticipated positive impact of the reform on our economy is very real,” Michel Leblanc said. “The proposed reform should generate almost an additional $2 billion in GDP, including $584 million in private investment, and should help create 20,000 permanent jobs. Given the current context of underemployment and relative economic weakness, it would fly in the face of common sense to deprive Quebec of these benefits for workers, companies and the Quebec government.”
The reform will improve the business environment’s competitiveness
“Reducing personal income tax and establishing a maximum threshold of 50% for the marginal tax rate would help attract talent,” Michel Leblanc said. “Plus, reducing corporate income tax and payroll tax would encourage investment and productivity. Clearly, the report’s recommendations will improve business competitiveness.”
It is time to act, implementing all of the recommendations
“The government announced the implementation of 28 of the Commission’s 71 recommendations when they tabled their last budget,” Mr. Leblanc concluded. “It now needs to go further and implement all the recommendations, including reducing corporate income taxes to the level advocated in the Godbout report.”
The Board of Trade’s brief presented to Quebec’s National Assembly can be consulted by clicking here.
About the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal
The Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal is made up of over 7,000 members. Its mission is to be the voice of Montréal’s business community and to promote the city’s prosperity. It is involved in key areas of economic development, advocating a philosophy of action based on engagement, credibility, proactivity, collaboration, and innovation. The Board of Trade also offers a range of specialized services to individuals and to businesses of all sizes to support them in their growth at home and abroad.
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Source:
Michelle LLambias Meunier
Senior Advisor, Public Relations, and Press Attaché
Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal
Phone: 514 871-4000, extension 4042
mllambias@ccmm.qc.ca
Facebook: www.facebook.com/chambremontreal
Twitter: @chambremontreal
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