Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you very much for your invitation.

For five years, the Syndicat de la fonction publique et parapublique du Québec has been proposing that Quebec taxpayers fill in one tax return only, rather than two, as is currently the case. In order to ensure Quebec's autonomy in tax matters, this single tax return should be administered by Revenu Québec. We therefore enthusiastically welcome Bill C-224, as proposed by the hon. member for Joliette, and we invite all parties to study it seriously and support it in the upcoming votes.

A single tax return would clearly come with its share of changes, but the advantages would be well worth the cost, especially if the necessary measures are put in place to avoid any loss of jobs. Thanks to employers like the public service in Quebec and at the federal level, all the mechanisms are available to protect them.

Among the advantages of a single tax return, we might mention the significant and ongoing savings for the governments and therefore for the public as well. According to an analysis by the Research Institute on Self-determination of Peoples and National Independence, the savings could well be $425 million annually. In the light of this observation, a refusal to achieve those savings can only feed the prevailing cynicism as to the management of public funds. Given all the investments needed for services to the public, those hundreds of millions of dollars could clearly be put to better use.

In terms of the choice of the agency that would become responsible for the single income tax paid by Quebeckers, it seems clear to us that Revenu Québec would be the best option. In fact, according to Revenu Québec itself, leaving the collection solely to the CRA would not mean savings. It would mean annual losses of $300 million, because Revenu Québec combats tax evasion more aggressively. It does so through the wealth indicators program that uses artificial intelligence to identify taxpayers whose returns do not match the value of their assets.

It is also essential to maintain Quebec's autonomy in tax matters. The autonomy allows the Government of Quebec to have its own tax policies without having to pay a penalty, as is the case with other provinces that wish to define the tax base differently from the federal government. The fight against tax evasion and tax avoidance is close to the hearts of Quebeckers, as shown by the strong support for taxing the tech giants, hand in hand with the strong criticism directed at the federal government for taking too long to collect those taxes. The provinces turned over tax collection to Ottawa. We therefore emphasize that, since Ottawa asked the provinces for flexibility in determining the tax base, Quebec could well ask Ottawa for flexibility in return.

Revenu Québec also has much more of a presence here than the Canada Revenue Agency. The provincial agency has 60% more points of service than its federal equivalent. We must also ensure that we maintain service in French that is of good quality and easily accessible. A lot of evidence, albeit anecdotal, shows that people prefer to call Revenu Québec for information on federal income tax.

Now that we have laid out the advantages of a single tax return, we also want to submit our ideas on solutions to mitigate the impact on the workers as much as possible. This of course is a problem to which we as a union are sensitive.

The impact that this change would have on the 5,000 affected jobs in Quebec should be carefully studied. All transfers or re-assignments should be spread over as many years as it will take. The Saguenay and Shawinigan regions specifically will have no costs in moving to a single tax return. We also believe that the National Verification and Collection Centre in Shawinigan-Sud, with its 1,300 jobs, should hardly be affected. Because it deals with returns coming from all over Canada, there would be therefore no reason to change the Centre's mission.

In addition, new exchanges of tax data between countries as a result of the OECD's initiative called BEPS, or base erosion and profit shifting, require some reinvestment in the federal agency so that this significant quantity of data is properly processed. We must also not forget the eight programs created in response to the health crisis, which CRA manages. As Quebec already has fewer federal public servants compared to the Canadian average, it would be even more timely for those new investments to be used to maintain CRA employment in Quebec.

Other federal programs could also benefit from the skills of the people working at CRA, including the ability to provide quality services in French. Priority hiring in certain other federal departments and agencies could be made available to the workers that have to be reassigned.

In addition, we must keep in mind that Revenu Québec would certainly benefit from the expertise of CRA employees, who could be transferred to the provincial agency, with all their working conditions intact. This type of situation has come up before; it would not be the first time.

Finally, we will conclude by asking for the same thing as the Commission des finances publiques du Québec, that is, greater cooperation between the two agencies in exchanging information required as the result of federal agreements. Whether or not we have a single tax return, it is essential that each tax authority have all the information available to ensure that all taxpayers pay their fair share.

Thank you very much.

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