Canada is an interesting country.
We have Stephen Harper as our prime minister, who is the leader of the Conservative Party. He has been in power in six years and only now he has started to learn about cutting spending. Since 2006, he has created a budget deficit that seems like will never be paid off and has also added to our near $600 billion national debt. In this year’s federal budget, he is (finally) cutting spending to the CBC, various departments and even getting rid of the penny.
This as well as the Tax-Free Savings Accounts are probably the only two good things he’s done since in power.
In the province of Ontario, we have a premier who has been elected to two majorities and a super minority (one seat from a majority government). This guy has been the epitome of sleaze: numerous scandals, endless taxation, spend, spend, spend and has turned Ontario into a have-not province.
Over in Toronto, the people elected a mayor who campaigned on cutting the gravy and find efficiencies. Granted, he has had numerous gaffes, but he has cut spending, saved the taxpayers’ money and has kept taxes at a minimal.
Where am I going with this? I reported yesterday on a Broadbent Institute poll that suggested the Canadian people want more taxation in order to maintain public services and balance income inequality. It was similar to another poll conducted in the spring that said a majority of Canadians want to be taxed more.
Here are some snippets of the report:
“The Broadbent Institute, founded by former New Democratic Party leader Ed Broadbent, released the findings of its latest “Equality Project”on Tuesday. The results suggested that more than three-quarters (77 percent) of Canadians believe income inequality is a serious issue and say they are willing to do more to tackle the problem.
“If left unresolved and government doesn’t provide necessary solutions, participants said then the long-term negative impact could eventually be seen in the standard of living (79 percent), community safety (75 percent), quality of healthcare and public services (72 percent), employment opportunity for youth (71 percent) and democratic principles (67 percent).
“Participants (71 percent) in the research study concurred that the widening gap between the rich and poor is something that ‘undermines Canadian values.’
“What are some of the solutions? The group said that an overwhelming number of Canadians, both high- and middle-income, support the introduction of new taxes and tax increases as some of the answers to the problem.”
The full article can be found here.
Unfortunately, the NDP will most likely get a minority government if not this election then the next one. This means taxes will soar, spending will heighten and more economic freedoms will be thrown out the window in the name of the “social contract.”
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