I imagine most of us are rather disenchanted about any more submissions to/appearances before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance but just in case anyone doesn’t feel it is totally hopeless yet….

Ottawa, June 06, 2014 –

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance has launched its pre-budget consultation process, and is inviting Canadians to participate. A report on the 2014 consultations will be tabled in the House of Commons prior to the December 2014 parliamentary adjournment. Suggestions made by Canadians and the pre-budget report compiled by the Committee will be considered by the Minister of Finance in the development of the 2015 federal budget.

“I am very pleased to be announcing the 2014 pre-budget consultations,” said Mr. James Rajotte, M.P. for Edmonton-Leduc and Chair of the House Finance Committee. “The Committee encourages the input of Canadians in this process, and invites individuals to provide a written submission with their proposals for the forthcoming budget.”

This fall, the Committee will invite specific groups and individuals to appear as witnesses during the pre-budget hearings. The focus of written submissions and the panels this fall will be on six key themes. The themes for the 2014 pre-budget consultations are the following:

Balancing the federal budget to ensure fiscal sustainability and economic growth
Supporting families and helping vulnerable Canadians by focusing on health, education and training
Increasing the competiveness of Canadian businesses through research, development, innovation and commercialization
Ensuring prosperous and secure communities, including through support for infrastructure
Improving Canada’s taxation and regulatory regimes
Maximizing the number and types of jobs for Canadians.
This fall on behalf of Finance Committee members, the Committee Clerk will extend invitations to selected individuals and groups to appear before the Committee. Pending House of Commons approval, the Committee intends to hold hearings in Ottawa as well as the following cities: Halifax, Montréal, Toronto, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Yellowknife and Vancouver.

The deadline for written submissions to the Committee is no later than Wednesday, 6 August 2014 at midnight eastern standard time. Submissions should be no longer than 2,000 words in length, including an executive summary. Text exceeding this limit will not be considered by the Committee. Following translation, the submissions will be posted on the Committee’s website.

Requests to appear before the Committee and written submissions should be sent to: finapbc-cpb@parl.gc.ca

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For more information, please contact:
Christine Lafrance, Clerk of the Standing Committee on Finance
Tel: 613-992-9753
E-mail: FINA@parl.gc.ca