• Kalcifer@sh.itjust.works
    1·
    13 hours ago

    In principle, I agree with removal of a VAT; though, I would want it to be removed permanently (or, at least, permanently exempting more goods, eg food and other necessities) rather than temporarily. I personally see little benefit to the citizen from a VAT. The only real positive, and it’s really quite a low bar imo, is that it can help account for tax-loopholes [1].

    The roll out of this announcement was very poorly done, imo. It seems that the federal government didn’t consult with any of the premiers beforehand (many of whom are now complaining, and rightly so, imo, of lost revenues due to the HST) [2]. And it seems to be causing more of a headache to shop owners [3][4] which may offset any possible increase in profits over such a short period.

    I disagree with the $250 payout. While I think that it will help some people in the short term, it is far from an actual solution, and only serves to increase Canada’s national debt — this is likely also compounded by the fact that Canada is temporarily lowering its tax revenue.

    References
    1. “What Is Value-Added Tax (VAT)?”. The Investopedia Team. Investopedia. Published: 2024-06-12. Accessed: 2024-11-26T00:01Z. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/v/valueaddedtax.asp.
      • §“Advantages and Disadvantages of Vats”. §“Advantages”.

        A VAT Closes Tax Loopholes: Proponents argue that a VAT would not only greatly simplify the complex federal tax code and increase the efficiency of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) but also make it much more difficult to avoid paying taxes. A VAT would collect revenue on all goods sold in the United States, including online purchases.

    2. “Trudeau’s GST holiday gets mixed response from provinces”. “CBC News: The National”. YouTube. Published: 2024-11-22. Accessed: 2024-11-26T00:13Z. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2XLo-JpiUg.
    3. “Businesses, residents in Ottawa provided mixed reactions to Trudeau’s GST tax relief”. CTV News. YouTube. Published: 2024-11-23. Accessed: 2024-11-26T00:20Z. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIZKYb45XVM.
    4. “Trudeau’s GST tax break may cause more work than it’s worth, says shop owner”. CTV News. YouTube. Published: 2024-11-22. Accessed: 2024-11-26T00:20Z. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKWSMkmA8io.
  • Nik282000
    12·
    1 day ago

    Groceries are unaffordable because nearly monopolistic businesses are increasing prices. And instead of investigating and enforcing heavy regulation of the distribution and sale of essentials in Canada to make groceries affordable we are going to remove taxes so that these businesses can keep their profit margin.

    🤡 We are the dumbest western country by far.

    • Greg ClarkeEnglish
      11·
      23 hours ago

      🤡 We are the dumbest western country by far.

      I guess you missed the whole Trump thing

      • Nik282000
        4·
        23 hours ago

        You know the conservatives are gonna take the next election. We’ll be lucky if they don’t start selling our teeth to the highest bidder.

        • Greg ClarkeEnglish
          3·
          19 hours ago

          I think you’re right, the Liberals will struggle especially with the Canadian tradition of Prime Ministers not stepping down as party leader until they’ve lost an election. If Trudeau had enacted the electoral reform he promised the NDP would at least have had a chance. I’ll miss my teeth 😬

    • Agent641@lemmy.world
      3·
      1 day ago

      Australia is clowning down right beside you. It’s a neck and neck race down to fucktopia

  • Pasta Dental@sh.itjust.works
    191·
    1 day ago

    I hate that this is becoming the norm these days. This is obviously a gift because of the upcoming elections. Anyone making 149 999 per year doesn’t need an extra 250$. This is very clearly meant to be able to gift it to as many people as possible. I really hope the other candidates hammer on this electorialist measure during the debates. Plus considering the finances of the country this really doesn’t make any sense. Like sure the country is under massive dept let’s just send out money and cut revenue for 2 months

    • Rentlar
      71·
      1 day ago

      Our politicians tried promises, but weren’t very good at keeping them.

      As we just saw in the US, people rationalized the most messed up stuff ever, because they were struggling with making ends meet. So at least we can possibly avoid that, even if there still a mix of rational and irrational animosity against Trudeau.

    • yeehaw
      212·
      1 day ago

      Hahaha I’m over 149999 a year and I can assure you that I definitely need it. But I won’t get it.

      • Pasta Dental@sh.itjust.works
        18·
        1 day ago

        Sorry if this sounds blunt but if you need 250$ while making >= 150 000$ then there must be a serious money leak in your budget. 250$ in a year should be really easy to recover if you absolutely need it. Cancelling a subscription like Netflix, downgrading your phone plan, lowering the heating in the winter by a degree will all very likely result in > 250$ in savings per year. That’s 20$ per month.

        • yeehaw
          31·
          1 day ago

          Eh, that’s fine, and I know how it sounds, but I feel there’s a lot of assumptions being made about my living conditions 😜.

          • Chip_Rat@lemmy.world
            41·
            24 hours ago

            Well here is your soapbox to educate us on how a person exists day to day where they make 150k but $250 more is “needed”.

            • yeehaw
              2·
              22 hours ago

              I’m not going to dump all my personal details on here, but if you think for a minute where rent is >1500/mo, or housing is over 1M, or how the more you make gross, the less you net due to tax brackets, it shouldn’t be that hard to figure out. You also need to consider not everyone is just an individual and needs to support themselves. Everyone’s life is different.

              Lastly, 150K CAD does not go very far these days. It sounds like a lot but with the costs of everything now, it’s not that much.

              150k of goods today was worth 252k in the year 2000, so costs have increased a lot.

              https://www.bankofcanada.ca/rates/related/inflation-calculator/

              And since the year 2000, housing has gone up 5x as much. Not to mention everything else.

              • maxprime@lemmy.ml
                1·
                13 hours ago

                I guess the surprising thing is that depending on the province, a gross salary of $150k nets well over $350 or so per day (before union dues, CPP, benefits, etc). Ultimately though, $250 is less than a day’s work.

                Like, I get that you might be supporting a kid or 5, and maybe live in an expensive city, and that $150k doesn’t support that. Canada is fucked right now, and that’s not lost on anyone. But if that’s the case then $250 is like a squirt gun on a forest fire.

                • yeehaw
                  1·
                  13 hours ago

                  This is exactly what I am getting at. Also I think others might not consider that them and their partner are clearing that together. The over 150k I’m referring to is household income.

              • windlas
                51·
                20 hours ago

                The more you make gross the less you net due to tax brackets?

                I dont think you understand how tax brackets work.

                Are you one of those people who think if you make a little extra and go into the next tax bracket, all your previous income will be taxed at that new rate?

                Unless you’re in some wildly unqie tax situation, if you make more gross, your net will always increase.

                • yeehaw
                  2·
                  16 hours ago

                  I understand how it works. But the extra income on each bracket is taxed at a higher rate, so the gross is definitely impacted more the higher you are. If you were taxed only at the lowest bracket rate for 150k you’d have a lot more to show for it.