Thank you, Madam Chair. I have a couple of comments and a question. I would start by saying that I'm speaking in favour of the bill. I think it's predictable, Madam Chair, that in the context of a tax bill I can't say that I'm speaking with enthusiasm, but as the Minister and his officials have explained to committee and in public forums in the last while, the circumstances around increasing the corporate tax rate is fairly straightforward. At least in part due to some of the factors outside of our control; what happens in other parts of Canada and as a consequence of the rather weird and convoluted formula financing deal with have with Ottawa, we are essentially compelled to do something in order to stem what really amounts to a net loss because of the 12 percent rate.
It has been brought to our attention that it was a couple or three years ago that we actually did the reverse here in this Assembly. I think we had a tax rate that was at 14 percent and we dropped it to 12, because circumstances at the time indicated that it was a good thing to do.