Flaherty’s $5 billion windfall profit for big business

What ever became of Jim Flaherty's much vaunted, but short lived, campaign of "Standing up for Consumers"? especially now in light of his 13% tax on everything that CONSUMERS will have to pay in Ontario, in order to fund a $5 billion windfall profit for business?

Since when is it the role of government to hand out $5 billion windfall profits to big business.....using taxpayers’ money?

This is Jim Flaherty’s idea of good government? Jim Flaherty’s role as the illegitimate father of the HST tax is certainly going to make his defeat in the next election much easier, as he had now revealed to the voters in Whitby-Oshawa who his real constituency is, and it’s not them but rather big business. I am also pleased to see that Jim Flaherty is hiding his role in this policy’s conception or who the true beneficiaries of this policy are, as he attempted to do with the income trust tax and hos constant refrain of “It’s not my fault”. Here is what Jim Flaherty boldly proclaimed in yesterday’s Montreal Gazette:

“Ontario's decision to harmonize will result in approximately $5 billion less in taxes paid annually by businesses - a stimulus to the economy at a time when it is necessary. This will contribute to making businesses more competitive, allowing them to boost investments and create jobs.”

Giving $5 billion in taxpayers’ money to businesses and corporations will do absolutely NOTHING to stimulate anything, if an equal amount of money is placed as a burden on the back of the very people who drive the economy, namely CONSUMERS. Consumers drive the economy, and not corporations per se. Meanwhile lowering the tax rate will, arguably have a positive effect on investment in the Province of Ontario, however it will only affect INCREMENTAL investment. Incremental investment being the investment that has taken place and that is being contemplated by businesses, for which tax considerations are but one of a myriad of considerations to weigh in making a decision whether to invest in Location A or Location B. To think that tax rates play such an important role in that type of decision concerning investment in Ontario, is to sell Ontario short.

Meanwhile, the WINDFALL PROFIT aspect of Flaherty’s HST tax is that it is not being doled out on the basis of businesses making INCREMENTAL investments, but rather is being indiscriminately being given to all businesses on the basis of DOING NOTHING. By DOING NOTHING, and not making any INCREMENTAL investment whatsoever, these businesses in Ontario are getting a $5 billion WINDFALL profit that is being funded by CONSUMERS, who now have a $5 billion INCREMENTAL disincentive to consume.

This HST tax is an absurdity, and I am going to make sure it sinks Flaherty in the next election, for if it doesn’t, then people are masochists, and are willing to be sold any line of nonsense in the name of big business is your best friend.

One thing IS for certain from this HST tax and the income trust tax on RRSP investments designed to kill the competitors to big business: Big Business and Jim Flaherty are Best Friends Forever.