B.C. HST: High-handed Selfish Tax

Tony Wanless

| July 29, 2009

July 2009: The BC Liberals make a sudden conversion to a new tax, the HST.

Gordon Campbell says the BC HST is the "single biggest thing we can do to improve B.C.'s economy." It is?

Generally, I’m a fan of sales taxes because they directly target consumption, which fits with my sense of fair play: The more you buy, the more you should pay.

But the timing of the government’s sudden conversion from a separate provincial sales tax regime to the Harmonized Sales Tax looks mighty self-serving to me.

Complaint: The HST makes for strange political bedfellows – and historical parallels

Victoria claims the new HST will save businesses $2 billion in (often hidden) administration and input costs. It cites the construction, manufacturing, transportation, mining, oil and gas, and forestry as beneficiaries.

But those are all big-company sectors. The reality is that BC’s thousands of small businesses, who make up about 95 per cent of businesses in this province, will probably be smacked because, by linking the provincial sales tax with the federal GST, the government will now be able to tax all kinds of previously untaxed goods and services.

Examples: New houses, which are already taxed heavily, will see tens of thousands of dollars added to the highest prices in Canada. Services provided by thousands of BC businesses will now be more expensive – at a time when their prices are under attack by recessionary forces – because they’ll be brought under the tax regime.

Sure, on a macro level, a harmonized sales tax is more efficient in that collection of the provincial tax will be moved to the federal government. Then, of course, there was that $1.6 million sweetener the feds cynically threw at B.C. to get them onside.

But despite the hard-sell of the benefits, I’m suspicious. The government always opposed harmonization, claiming it was unfair. Now, in the midst of a recession, it says it is fair.

I think what’s really happening is the government is desperate for money, and so is selfishly shoving itself into the marketplace to replenish a recession-ravaged cashbox it emptied during the good times.

I wish I could do that. And I’m sure many businesses hobbled by the downturn feel the same way.

After all, it would only be fair.

HST in BC: Business Responds to the Tax

Poison Pill: BC Liberals and the HST

Beware the HST Revolt

The Silver Lining in BC's HST

BC's HST: Sudden Death

An HST Ray of Hope

HST Follies

Tags
- tony wanless,
- HST,
- BC government,
- City and Government,
- Taxation

Hello: Well, well, well!

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 2010-09-28 12:10.

Hello: Well, well, well! It would seem that the BC First Party is going to make real inroads IF - IF they make hay of the now frenzied socialist's attack on them in such a way that our enemies Conservatives, Liberals or any of the other Socialists (eg. NDP, Vancouver Suns etc most TV stations & too many radio stns) are allowed to get away with the ongoing crap they have started up against the first signs of democracy as it was meant to be - So stop being pleasant - the socialists ain't! Geoff Fenton PS - Telus, on the side of all that is wrong will be reading this post - gf

Wake up BC Get rid of

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 2010-06-22 09:47.

Wake up BC Get rid of Campbell and the HST. Stop selling out BC.

Wake up BC Get rid of

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 2010-06-22 09:47.

Wake up BC Get rid of Campbell and the HST. Stop selling out BC.

The HST is one thing. It

Submitted by Jefferson (not verified) on Sun, 2010-05-02 00:26.

The HST is one thing. It remains to be seen how it will impact our economy. Without question the Libs handled it idiotically by promising _not_ to implement it, then doing an about-face and implementing it. However, voting in the NDP is another thing. First, when put on the spot about whether they'd scrap the HST if voted in, the NDP have NOT said 'yes, we'll scrap it.' Instead, they've said, 'well, we'll have to study it...' In other words, they are no cure for the HST. In addition, remember back in 2000 when the NDP had run our economy (and everything else) into ruin? Yeah, they're even worse than the a**hat BC Liberals. Zalm & Co. are surging now on this one issue (anti-HST) and I personally am warily but with some hope waiting to see if they'll turn out to be more than a one-trick pony. If they can come up with more to offer, they might be an alternative. However, as galling as it is to those who are strongly anti-HST the Liberals are currently the least of all the evils when it comes to the wretched choices we have of political parties to vote in. It's always like this, of course. (I myself don't feel too strongly about the HST, don't like it but don't doubt we need to try new things to pay for all the civilization we want. I sure as heck want schools, hospitals, roads, etc.)

As an old gal, living on my

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 2009-12-15 14:18.

As an old gal, living on my own, on pension, The HST, will cause me to lose my home. I have had to sell my car, I couldn't afford the gas, nor insurance. I needed the money to catch up on utility bills and pay down my income tax bill. Seniors, have no tax write offs, so, we then get nailed for taxes. Living up north, heat, hydro, and food are high. The only way low income people can cut down is, food and utilities. You, never launder your clothes in hot water, and you hang them up, to save on hydro. The furnace is kept down to 12, in the day, and down to 10, for over the night. You never buy meat, you cut your meals down to toast in the morning, and, no lunch, and have vegetables for supper. I am trying to sell my house, however, because of massive lay offs in this mill town, I am very afraid, my house won't sell, before the CRA, seize it, they have said to me, they were going to seize my house and contents, and garnishee my pension. But, rents are higher than my mortgage, so, you end up homeless. There is also a shortage for rental properties. This HST is very unfair, low income families and seniors, pay the same percentage as, the white collar people do. There will be low income families with their children living homeless, and the same for seniors on a fixed pension.

Having just visited New

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 2009-10-23 12:02.

Having just visited New Brunswick where the HST has been implemented. It has not improved the economy. It has not put more money into the pockets of the consumer. Open your eyes BC government HST only helps the greedy rich. If the government wants to help the economy of BC stop letting primary resources from leaving the province raw and have them put into secondary resources before being exported.

The next time I vote it will

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 2009-10-08 15:02.

The next time I vote it will be for the Western Block Party. The west really has to separate from the east. Western provinces would not be forced to keep a lying, stealing criminal premier such as campbell. Westeners would not have their tax dollars funneled to the east. Eastern Canada has been a country in its self for a multitude of decades. So the western provinces should also have this choice. I want to work for a western country that would rid these western citizens of corruption. Just think of campbell giving himself a 53% wage hike and his henchmen also got huge increases in their salary's. And he has the gall to add even more burden on BC people. campbell has destroyed the province of BC, selling BC out from under our feet. Such as selling out the BCR for personal gain for himself and his cronies. He is selling our rivers. He has turned BC into a third world province. I want the right to be able to boot him down east with Harpo and Iggy, thats where he belongs.

Its time to move to

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 2009-10-02 16:50.

Its time to move to differnet province. Campbell promises and does not keep up to them. We do not need HST tax in BC. we need NDP government.

two bullets one for cambel

Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 2009-09-12 16:29.

two bullets one for cambel the other for hansen

please send a message to

Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 2009-09-12 14:42.

please send a message to premier campbell not to put this tax on it is going to hurt disability people who dont make much money

If BC NDP oppose this,

Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 2009-08-29 11:55.

If BC NDP oppose this, they'll win next time.

And the thing that makes all

Submitted by pseverinson (not verified) on Thu, 2009-07-30 10:00.

And the thing that makes all of this look even worse is that the Liberals didn't mention anything about this in their election campaign. Isn't that when you're supposed to tell people about your major policy plans? Whether you agree with the HST or not, it makes them look underhanded and sneaky.