The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is pleased with several measures contained in Quebec's June 4 budget and says that leaders of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Quebec can rest a little easier since the government seems to have heard their calls.

The CFIB was enthusiastic about the drop in the SME manufacturer tax rate, which will decline from 8% to 4% by 2015. "For some time the CFIB has been asking that tax rate for all SMEs be reduced to the Canadian average which is about 4%,” commented Martine Hébert, senior vice-president and spokesperson at the CFIB. “We therefore see this as a step in the right direction and we hope that in the near future, all SMEs will enjoy the same treatment when the committees on taxation and expenditure programs have completed their work."

The CFIB was also pleased to hear that the government is giving employers in the natural and applied sciences sector a temporary reduction in contributions to the province's Health Services Fund (HSF) when hiring skilled workers. "This is good news because the HSF is a payroll tax that is especially harmful to companies that create jobs," commented Ms. Hébert.