March 6, 2013

Parliamentary Budget Officer:
Canada Revenue Agency is Failing to Provide Requested Information

Charlottetown Senator Percy Downe is questioning why Revenue Minister Gail Shea is stonewalling the Parliamentary Budget Officer in his efforts to determine how much money is lost to Canadians by overseas tax evasion.

In a letter made public by Parliamentary Budget Officer Kevin Page, he stated that he is unable to provide an estimate of the so-called “Tax Gap” - the difference between the tax revenue the government ought to be able to collect and what is actually collected – because of a lack of information. Page states that despite repeated attempts to obtain data from the Canada Revenue Agency, the agency simply isn’t cooperating.

The Conservative Government has long maintained that not only can this gap not be calculated, but that no one should try. After extensive research, the Parliamentary Budget Office has come up with a means by which it can be estimated – if it is provided with the information it has requested. By the very nature of the problem being examined, such an estimate would only be a rough indication of the scale of the problem we face, but it would be a start.

“We’ve all heard the old expression ‘where there’s a will, there’s a way’”, said Downe. “According to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, there are ways to calculate the tax gap, just as the United Kingdom, Sweden and the United States have done. Canadians want, and deserve, to know just what type of figures we are dealing with. And yet, this Government not only lacks the will to calculate it, they are not too keen on anyone else calculating it either.” Why is Minister Gail Shea refusing to cooperate?

Enclosed: Letter from Kevin Page, Parliamentary Budget Officer, March 2, 2013

For further information:
Senator Percy Downe: 613-943-8107
Or toll free at 1-800-267-7362   
www.sen.parl.gc.ca/pdowne