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The following is now available on the CRA Web site:

News Release

Lévis, Québec, July 31, 2008… The Honourable Gordon O’Connor, Minister of National Revenue today announced that the federal and all provincial governments have entered into civil settlement agreements with Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd. and Rothmans, Benson & Hedges to resolve all potential civil claims they may have in relation to the two companies’ role in the movement of contraband tobacco in the early 1990s.

In addition to the civil settlement, the two companies each pleaded guilty in court to a single count of “aiding persons to sell or be in possession of tobacco products manufactured in Canada that were not packaged and were not stamped in conformity with the Excise Act and its amendments and the ministerial regulations” between 1989 and 1994. The fines in these prosecutions, combined with the civil settlements, will result in the companies paying $1.15 billion to governments.

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I’m Officially On Vacation

Yes .. I’m on vacation now, and away from my business - on my laptop. Thank goodness I have hi-speed internet access with my EVDO card!

I thought I would do a little experiment.

I have painfully over the years setup my Eudora home email program with about 300 folders, and filters galore .. and rely much on my Spamnix add-on to sort the almost 1200 emails I receive a day.

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The following News Release or Speech has just been posted on the Finance Canada Site.

Ottawa, July 14, 2008
2008-054

The Honourable Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance, today released draft legislative proposals to implement the remaining tax measures from Budget 2008 along with several previously announced tax initiatives for consultation.

“Our government is not only reducing the tax burden on all Canadians, many of the measures contained in this second Budget Implementation Bill will modernize our tax system and make it more efficient,” said Minister Flaherty.

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The following News Release or Speech has just been posted on the Finance Canada Site

Ottawa, July 10, 2008
2008-052

The Honourable Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance, today indicated Canadian agreement with the United States Treasury Department’s Technical Explanation to the Fifth Protocol to the Canada-United States Tax Convention. Canada ratified the Protocol on December 14, 2007, when Bill S-2 received Royal Assent.

It is the usual practice of the U.S. Treasury Department to prepare a technical explanation of tax treaties and protocols subject to formal ratification. While it is not customary for Canada to issue such an explanation, Canada was given an opportunity to review and comment on the U.S. document. The Minister indicated that Canada agrees that the Technical Explanation accurately reflects understandings reached in the course of negotiations with respect to the interpretation and application of the various provisions in the Protocol.

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The following News Release or Speech has just been posted on the Finance Canada Site.

Ottawa, July 9, 2008
2008-051

The Government of Canada today announced adjustments to the rules for government guaranteed mortgages aimed at protecting and strengthening the Canadian housing market. The new measures include:

* Fixing the maximum amortization period for new government-backed mortgages to 35 years;

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I had a little fun with a “new toy” this weekend .. I was playing with the site Animoto.com .. it’s a site where you can make a short video for 30 seconds, in about five minutes! It’s quite simple to use - here’s the promo video (it’s been around for a while)

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The following News Release or Speech has just been posted on the Finance Canada Site.

Ottawa, July 2, 2008
2008-049

The Honourable Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance, today released new guidelines for stock exchanges that seek to become Designated Stock Exchanges for income tax purposes. The guidelines will provide greater transparency and increased opportunities for investors, and will improve the ability of Canadian capital markets to respond to global market developments.

“With today’s release of principles that will guide our government’s official designation of domestic and foreign stock exchanges, Canadians can make informed investment decisions confident that securities trade on well-governed, regulated and transparent markets,” said Minister Flaherty. “At the same time, foreign exchanges can now rely on clear rules in their efforts to attract Canadian investments.”

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