This is the single biggest thing we can do to improve B.C.'s economy.
- Premier Gordon Campbell
Be very afraid - the B.C. Liberals' planned Harmonized Sales Tax is the biggest rip-off of British Columbians imaginable.
Rather than "improve" B.C.'s economy, the HST will force ordinary British Columbians to pay an extra 7 per cent on a wide range of consumer goods and services - from restaurant meals to haircuts to bicycles to new homes to airline tickets to funeral services and much more.
That additional tax will force many to cut expenditures just at a time when the recession is already damaging the economy - the last thing we should be doing.
It will devastate certain sectors of the economy, especially restaurants, by forcing consumers to pay an extra 7 per cent on the food portion of meals.
It will add an extra 7 per cent cost to professional services, including accounting, household renovations, home care, massage therapy, dry cleaning and more.
So who benefits? Big business.
That's why the B.C. Business Council and similar groups support the tax. The HST will transfer $1.9 billion from individuals to big business. Theoretically businesses could cut prices by 7% because they can recover the PST they now pay - but if you think that will happen, say hi to the Easter Bunny for me.
Who else benefits? The B.C. Liberal government gets $1.6 billion from the Stephen Harper Conservative federal government to "implement" the HST.
And guess what?
B.C. will still dramatically slash public services because the new tax revenue will only offset reduced taxes on big business.
The HST is a highly regressive tax - that is, it disproportionately impacts lower income earners because far more of their limited income will be spent paying the tax than higher income earners.
Improve B.C.'s economy?
Give me a break! This is a pure tax grab and transfer.
The restaurant industry is blunt about what happened.
"Harmonization will result in a permanent tax shift of hundreds of millions of dollars to our customers," says Mark von Schellwitz of the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association.
The B.C. Liberals rejected an HST during the last election - misleading voters once again, just like with the sale of B.C. Rail.
"A harmonized goods and services tax is not something that is contemplated in the B.C. Liberal election platform," they said.
And there's been no consultation - just the surprise imposition of an unfair tax.
But there's still time to stop this tax grab - you can start by joining my new protest group - NO BC HST - by going to www.facebook. com and searching for it.
The B.C. Liberals shouldn't get away with imposing an unfair tax they denied even considering - and then ripping off consumers permanently.
Read more from Bill Tieleman at www.thetyee.ca Hear Bill Mondays at 10 a.m. on CKNW AM 980's Bill Good Show. Email: weststar@telus.net Website: billtieleman.blogspot.com
