Keeping families and jobs in rural Canada is not easy.
Proposed changes to capital gains rules would make it harder for a family member to keep the family farm, according to AIMS senior fellow Sylvain Charlebois.
Many wonder how values embedded in everything the family business does can survive if the next generation of the family cannot continue to own it.
Federal tax reform is an important goal, and some businesses do benefit in unjustified ways. However, the consequences of this proposal are serious.
It is important that the federal government find a way to improve the tax system, while preserving the value of family businesses in the agrifood and other sectors.