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(December 29, 2006) Federal Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty has announced a proposal “to improve the taxation of financial institutions by better aligning the current tax rules with new accounting standards.”

The accounting standards, set out by the Accounting Standards Board, came into effect on October 1, 2006. Details of the proposed tax changes are being released to provide financial institutions and their advisors with information on the proposed changes before the draft legislation is released for public comment in 2007.

The proposed changes are specifically related to market-to-market properties, specified debt obligations, policy reserves that are deductible by insurance corporations in computing income for tax purposes and the minimum tax for life insurance corporations resident in Canada.

The Department of Finance says the proposals are “broadly revenue-neutral,” instead designed to improve the economic efficiency of the tax system by improving the measurement of income and capital for tax purposes.

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Wellington West, Edward Jones top the list of best employers in Canada

(December 29, 2006) Report on Business magazine today released its eighth annual list of the 50 best employers in Canada, based on research conducted by ROB and human resources outsourcing and consulting firm Hewitt Associates.

Research leaders at Hewitt say employee engagement, which quantifies how closely leaders and employees work together toward a common vision and the collective energy that makes an organization a great place to work,

Financial services organizations in the list of top 10 companies this year include Wellington West Capital in first place, Edward Jones in third, Envision Financial of Langley, B.C., a financial services company with 750 employees, in seventh, and Farm Credit Canada of Regina with 1,200 employees in eighth. Desjardins Groupe d’assurances générales, of Lévis, Quebec, also weighed in further down the list, placing 12th overall.

To participate in the 50-best ranking, an organization must have at least 400 permanent employees in Canada and have operated in Canada for at least three years. Detailed questionnaires are distributed to employees; a human resources practices survey is completed by HR personnel; and a leadership team survey is completed by top executives. Researchers also examine how closely employees’ and leaders’ goals align and whether workplace practices and programs reinforce that corporate vision.

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Middlefield renames Horizon fund

(December 29, 2006) Middlefield Group announced this week that it is renaming the Horizon Total Return Fund, calling it the HTR Total Return Fund, effective immediately, to avoid confusions with other investment products.

The fund, managed by Guardian Capital and Middlefield Capital Corporation, is an actively managed, diversified investment portfolio of income trust and common share securities with an emphasis on high quality, large cap issuers, designed to provide tax-efficient total returns.

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(12/29/06)