My question is for the Leader of the Government in the Senate. Senator Gold, as you know, Conservative member Larry Maguire’s Bill C-208 received Royal Assent last June. It sought to correct some tax inequities that occur when an SME is transferred to a family member.

During the debate on Bill C-208, the government spokesperson, Senator Woo, Senator Harder, Senator Dalphond and you claimed that passing the bill would create a huge loophole in the tax system. You said, and I quote:

 . . . Bill C-208 as currently structured would enable loopholes within the tax system that create opportunities for tax avoidance by the wealthy at the expense of those these measures should rightfully support.

Six months have passed and your government has still not found it necessary to make amendments to the Income Tax Act. My question is simple, Senator Gold. Did the government mislead senators during the debate on Bill C-208?

Senator Gold, if what you and your fellow colleagues who spoke on behalf of the government in this chamber said was true, how do you explain the Minister of Finance’s lack of action on this huge loophole that Bill C-208 has created? According to your own speech and according to what Senator Harder said, hundreds of millions of dollars would have been lost by the treasury because of Bill C-208.

The government had two opportunities to correct this with Bill C-2 and Bill C-8. Why has the government done nothing? Is it because what you said was just not true or because the government is asleep at the switch, or is it just a question of neglect?