David Coon, MLA/Député

 

Mr. Coon: The Minister of Finance and his colleagues keep repeating that they are simply asking those with a little more to pay a little extra to increase revenues and to cut expenses. He is particularly asking women to do so, yet he is giving some of the biggest and wealthiest enterprises in our province a free pass. They are not being asked to pay anything more in corporate income tax, but the government has millions in financial assistance for those same enterprises. Can the minister tell this House what percentage of tax revenue received from corporate income tax is actually returned to those same enterprises in the form of financial assistance from the provincial government?

Hon. Mr. Melanson: I will ask the member for Moncton South to answer the question from my colleague, whether he agrees with . . .

(Interjection.)

Hon. Mr. Melanson: Southwest—sorry. I ask whether the member agrees with the new policy on long-term care for seniors, because that is what he told her on Monday. To answer the question from the member for Fredericton South, we are asking non residential companies in New Brunswick to get back to the property tax rate of 2012. Therefore, the private sector is also being asked to contribute in trying to get this fiscal situation back on track and in order. We are asking all New Brunswickers to be part of the solution. We are asking the opposition members to help us out and offer us some ideas on how we can get this fiscal situation back on track. Everybody needs to contribute. As we are doing this, we will be protecting the most vulnerable of our province. That is our policy. That is fairness, and that is what we are doing.

Mr. Coon: There are a variety of what economists call tax expenditures associated with the very special tax reduction features of the corporate income tax system. They are called tax expenditures because they represent a real cost to the province in terms of revenue that is foregone, which could otherwise contribute to the salaries of teachers, the provision of day care and early learning services, or improving access to mental health care. Does the minister’s department calculate those tax expenditures and make them publicly available?

Hon. Mr. Melanson: Thank you for the question. As the honourable member certainly understands, we have a fiscal policy in New Brunswick that needs to be balanced. We need to have a fiscal policy that is competitive for our private sector to be able to compete. Some compete domestically in New Brunswick, some compete nationally, and some compete internationally. Therefore, we need to have a fiscal policy that accommodates in a certain way so that our private sector can be competitive. Also, we need to have the private sector generate wealth and revenues for us to be able to contribute toward the social programs that we need to offer to New Brunswickers in a high-quality fashion.As Finance Minister, I need to look at both sides, the fiscal policy and certainly making sure that we are efficient as a government. That is what we are doing. That is why we need to get this fiscal situation back on track. We are asking the private sector and individuals to help out to get this back on track.

Mr. Coon: Perhaps the minister would take that last question under advisement and report back. It does not seem as though he knows the answer. The one thing that all New Brunswickers agree on is that everyone should pay their fair share to support our schools, hospitals, children, seniors, mental health care, and the vulnerable. However, people cannot determine whether everyone is paying their fair share unless there is transparency. The amount of personal income tax paid by each income group is public knowledge. The amount of corporate tax paid by New Brunswick companies that are publicly traded is also public knowledge. However, the corporate income tax paid by closely held private companies or multinationals operating in New Brunswick is not publicly available. To determine whether these companies are in fact paying their fair share or could pay a little more, will the minister publish the corporate income tax paid by firms operating in New Brunswick if they currently do not make that information available themselves?

L’hon. M. Melanson : Le député d’en face sait très bien que les données qui peuvent être rendues publiques le sont, tandis que celles qui ne le peuvent pas ne le sont pas. Je doit réitérer au député d’en face que, ici, au Nouveau-Brunswick, comme dans toute autre province, nous devons avoir une politique financière qui assure un équilibre entre générer des recettes et avoir un secteur privé concurrentiel, que ce soit à l’échelon domestique ou à l’échelle nationale ou même internationale. Nous devons aussi avoir une politique financière qui générera suffisamment de recettes, soit par l’entremise des entreprises privées ou des particuliers, pour être en mesure d’offrir les services de qualité que recherchent les gens du Nouveau-Brunswick.Tel est l’objectif d’une politique financière et tel est le travail d’un ministre des Finances. C’est exactement ce que je vais faire, en tant que ministre des Finances du gouvernement actuel.

ORAL QUESTIONS 41 QUESTIONS ORALES

May 5, 2015 Not finalized / Non finalisé le 5 mai 2015