August1991 Posted July 5, 2012 Report Posted July 5, 2012 (edited) How should we pay our taxes/contributions to the federal government? Through the GST? Through federal income taxes? Through the CPP? (Not collected in Quebec) Through EI? Through various federal excise/custom taxes? Through corporate taxes? Should we let the federal government borrow on our behalf? Or should we simply let the federal government (through its Bank of Canada) print more Canadian dollars? In Canada, these are the main ways the federal government pays for the services/transfers it provides to us on our behalf. [incidentally, there is no CPP in Quebec (since Quebec has its own State pension system). And federal income taxes in Quebec are different than the rest of Canada. In Alberta, there is no GST. In Ontario/Maritimes, there is a HST. In Quebec, there is GST (but collected by the Quebec government). In BC, the GST situation is confusing.] Canada, what a country! ----- So, how should Canadians pay for the federal government budget? Through: -The GST -with its refund, collected differently in various provinces -corporate taxes (and possibly higher prices) (corporations don't pay taxes, only people write cheques) -federal income tax -the more you work, the more you pay -excise/custom taxes on specific items: it might encourage people to buy domestic/specific items -non Chinese, avoid cigarettes -EI/CPP (payroll taxes) -these are lump sum taxes on working people: over $50,000, you don't pay these "taxes" -printing more money -borrowing more (interest rates are really low on long term government bonds) -good idea now ----- IOW, since Harper seems to want to spend more on DND airplanes/jets/helicopters, ministerial limos, PMO/RCMP security, NATO, federal prisons and political peace, how are we collectively (in a federal sense) to pay for this new federal agenda? Since Harper wants to buy political peace from people like Maher Arar ($10 million) and Bev Oda ($5 million), the question is how best to give Stephen Harper our money? Edited July 5, 2012 by August1991 Quote
TheNewTeddy Posted July 5, 2012 Report Posted July 5, 2012 Federal taxes should be Property Taxes since the idea is taken from the whole idea that you are renting your lands from the King. Sales Taxes should also be Federal; uniform across the country. Provinces should have Income Taxes, for the wealth they generate within their borders. Most citizens live and work within the same Province. Municipalities should have Corporate taxes. Quote Feel free to contact me outside the forums. Add "TheNewTeddy" to Twitter, Facebook, or Hotmail to reach me!
Newfoundlander Posted July 6, 2012 Report Posted July 6, 2012 I like consumption taxes, though not great for the poor. Quote
cybercoma Posted July 6, 2012 Report Posted July 6, 2012 Through all of the above, except for CPP and EI. Those are not taxes and should not be used as general revenue. Actually, I'm not certain on the legality, but I don't think they're actually able to use CPP and EI. Quote
Peter F Posted July 7, 2012 Report Posted July 7, 2012 We need to find the most Ironic and Sarcastic taxes and use them Quote A bayonet is a tool with a worker at both ends
Wilber Posted July 7, 2012 Report Posted July 7, 2012 (edited) Alberta has GST but no provincial sales tax. Edited July 7, 2012 by Wilber Quote "Never trust a man who has not a single redeeming vice". WSC
Argus Posted July 7, 2012 Report Posted July 7, 2012 How should we pay our taxes/contributions to the federal government? Through the GST? A value added tax is probably the best. However rich you are, your money is useless to you if you aren't spending it on something. You can just build it into a bigger and bigger pile, I suppose, but what's it for if you never spend it? But at the same time, there's no need for the GST/VAT to be the same on all products. If we feel the need to make adjustments, ie, ease the burden on the poor and increase it on the more wealthy members we can increase the GST based on whatever criteria we set. For example, the GST would be higher on buying a home or property based on the size of that home/property. Through federal income taxes? Income taxes let the rich off lightly since very little of their money comes from income. IOW, since Harper seems to want to spend more on DND airplanes/jets/helicopters, ministerial limos, PMO/RCMP security, NATO, federal prisons and political peace, how are we collectively (in a federal sense) to pay for this new federal agenda? This is a surprisingly ignorant question, but I suppose given your Quebec centric view it's understandable. I had noticed when I was in Quebec, and when viewing/reading Quebec media, that virtually nothing about Canada appears in it unless it directly affects Quebec. That's the English media, and I can only imagine it's far worse in the French media. You therefore might be excused for thinking the Tories are fixated on spending money on military and prisons since that so outrages the Quebec media that's all they'd ever report. The Quebec media would be happy, even gleeful, I think, if the government decided to abolish all police, all military and all prisons. The'd be dancing on the clouds! Until they got beaten and robbed, of course, but the Quebec media is a pretty shallow, elitist bunch of ideological socialists, and don't tend to think about human realities much. In point of fact, of course, these purchases are a miniscule portion of federal spending, and not attached to any particular agenda other than making up for the years of neglect by the Liberals. The military rust-out and the crumbling prison infrastructure requires investment to make up for that. Quote "A liberal is someone who claims to be open to all points of view — and then is surprised and offended to find there are other points of view.” William F Buckley
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.