Department of Finance keeping close tabs on Sandy McIntyre

Denis Normand of the Department of Finance wrote a memo of November 1, 2006 concerning comments made by Sandy McIntyre on BNN that day.

It’s great to know that the Department of Finance keeps such things. But it would be more impressive if they actually answered the bleeding question that Sandy posed on BNN, namely:

“Please explain to my mother how her RRIF is not taxable [the basis on which Finance concocts their false analysis of tax leakage]. She has to withdraw an amount that exceeds the income earned by the RRIF and is taxed at her marginal tax rate (about 36%). Allowing for the proposed structure she will now be exposed to full double taxation on the income earned by her investments with no relief.

There is still a bust in your analysis of the net impact of *non-taxable* investors.

I find it odd that Finance has chosen to target a retail product that uses similar tools as used by private equity and foreign owners of Canadian companies in their effort to avoid current cash taxes. While the trusts are visible, they are not the only symptom of a flawed tax system.”

Thereafter ensued $100 billion in trust tax related takeovers, that have caused Canadian taxpayers to lose $1 billion a year in tax revenue. Why was this obvious to Sandy McIntyre and the rest of us on Day I and yet these self interested CEO’s who put the government up this income trust fraud, didn’t give a rats’ ass about the foreign takeovers and tax losses that were sure to ensue. These clowns were busy sabotaging their shareholders at the same time they were sabotaging Canada’s tax base and our country’s economic sovereignty. That probably qualifies them for CEO of the Year or an Order of Canada, wouldn’t you say:

Globe November 2, 2006:

““High-profile directors and CEOs, meanwhile, had approached Mr. Flaherty personally to express their concerns: Many felt they were being pressed into trusts because of their duty to maximize shareholder value, despite their misgivings about the structure. Paul Desmarais Jr., the well-connected chairman of Power Corp. of Canada, even railed against trusts in a conversation with Prime Minister Stephen Harper during a trip to Mexico, and told him he should act quickly to stop the raft of conversions, according to sources.”