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Toronto Centre Federal By-election (cancelled)

This is just so insane. They're honestly destroying the country. Our budget position is our single biggest selling point on a global basis, along with our natural resources, and they're throwing it away for tax cuts with absolutely no economic benefit.
 
Anyone enjoying Crazy Steve's 2% sale - where every item (excluding groceries and other essentials) is 2% off?

Actually it's less than 2% off - it's 1.869% off of a $1.07 dollar + GST. Even less if you added PST or HST.

Or for every 124 coffees I buy, I get one free!

Huge savings for the consumer!
 
My grande coffee in the morning at Starbucks used to be $2.00 even after tax. Now it's $1.98. I throw the pennies into the tip jar. Net savings for me, zero.
 
The tax cuts in Ontario were between 20% and 30% on the biggest revenue generating taxes (according to the propoganda); the tax cuts federally are at most a trimming of the nose hairs.... as you are all saying - it is saving you pretty well nothing. So if it is saving you pretty well nothing, it can not be a very large cut.
 
GST has accounted for 15% to 17% of total federal tax revenues each year between 1999 and 2006. That's a huge chunk of change. The GST was cut by about 28 percent (your "20% and 30% on [one of the] biggest revenue generating taxes").

But most consumers don't even notice it, while it's intentionally strangling the treasury and binding the next government's hands. That's exactly why the provincial Liberals brought the health premiums back after Harris/Eves pulled the same stunt.
 
SeanTrans said:
GST has accounted for 15% to 17% of total federal tax revenues each year between 1999 and 2006. That's a huge chunk of change. The GST was cut by about 28 percent (your "20% and 30% on [one of the] biggest revenue generating taxes").
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So somewhere just below 4.8% of all revenues, at the same time revenues have been climbing at a rate of higher than that compounded annually for many many years. Even adding in a nominal lowing of income taxes - and a lowering of debt charges - the total cuts so far are rather small in comparison. The only reason why we don't have even more room is because spending (social and other) has increased considerably under both previous governments.



SeanTrans said:
But most consumers don't even notice it, while it's intentionally strangling the treasury and binding the next government's hands. That's exactly why the provincial Liberals brought the health premiums back after Harris/Eves pulled the same stunt.
Click to expand...

I don't believe that cutting the GST is done to intentionally strangle the treasury - it is done for politics - it was one of the major things that they promised and not delivering would be dangerous politically. True cutting the GST makes it more inefficient - something that is often mentioned.... by the fact that the admin costs as a percentage of total tax revenues become rather high - but by that logic increasing the tax to 20% would make it much more efficient. I am sure that if politics were absent any tax cuts would have been made to corporate taxes (for competitive reasons). From my perspective - I would actually not have lowered the GST - but I would have cut the government considerably (getting the federal government out of all social spending - with the exception of constitutionally required transfer payments). I would have transferred the taxation also over to the provincial governments.... I would be aiming for budgetary surpluses in the range of 25 - 30 billion dollars :p
 
Recent poll: PM Harper favourable by 58%

Recent polling numbers from The Stategic Counsel for The Globe and Mail and CTV.....

When respondents were asked if they found the leaders favourable, less than half said they had a good impression of Dion (difference between a Jan. 11-14, 2007 poll in brackets):

Stephen Harper, Conservatives: 58 per cent (+4)
Elizabeth May, Green Party: 56 per cent (-2)
Jack Layton, NDP: 55 per cent (-4)
Stephane Dion, Liberals: 39 per cent (-20)

"It has to be an issue of concern for him that his negatives are as high as they are, particulary if you look at it more deeply. He's got a higher percentage of people saying he's 'very unfavourable' than Stephen Harper, which is surprising, given that he hasn't been in that government hot seat -- Mr. Harper has."

In fact, 25 per cent of people found Dion "very unfavourable" in the survey and 34 per cent "somewhat unfavourable," totalling 61 per cent.
For the 39 per cent who approved of Dion, 34 per cent found him "somewhat favourable" but only 5 per cent "very favourable."
By comparison, 19 per cent found Harper "very unfavourable" and 23 per cent "somewhat unfavourable," while 43 per cent answered "somewhat favourable" and 15 per cent "very favourable."

Dion's approval rating down across country: poll

Survey results in more depth here.
 
That must be frustrating for Dion and the Grits in general. They probably don't have my vote anyway, but I do feel a bit frustrated in the populace for not giving him a chance. He's an extremely smart man with some good policy proposals. He may not be slick like a Layton or Harper, but to say he's "unfavourable" is a bit much.
 
I'm not a big fan of polls, but I found this one interesting regarding Dion's downward spiral in popularity. Even though, some of my Liberal friends, who are "very unfavourable" or "somewhat unfavourable" to Dion will still vote Liberal no matter.
It should be cause for concern though as fence sitters will probobaly sit out the next election than vote Dion.
 
Ya gotta feel sorry for the guy. He's not really the traditional politician.. I can't see him as a contrived, scheming character that you could easily classify Harper, Ignatieff, and even Layton as. And that's the problem, it makes him easy to pick on and jab, and that's what the Conservatives did. Any politician would look bad after a year of continuous attack ads (something unprecedented in Canadian politics outside of an election period). And being in opposition actually is worse in this case, especially in the minority government situation, especially when you hold the trigger, when your party is rebuilding.

If this whole wave of "change" from the States moves up here, I think Dion can benefit from it. I think it was Rex Murphy who said he's an "outsider in an insider's world".. which is all too true. If we want real change on the hill, not the lie that Steve's given us, we may have to choose the outsiders.
 
299 bloor call control. said:
If this whole wave of "change" from the States moves up here
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"change"? Canadians spoke loud and clear, we got "change" from majority governments who act arrogant. IMO Canadians are happy with minority government with proper checks and balances. Let's stick with the status quo here and leave "change" with the Americans, who undoubtibly after 8 years of Republican rule, need it.
 
I'm not a big fan of polls, but I found this one interesting regarding Dion's downward spiral in popularity.
Click to expand...

I'm sure you find all Tory-favouring polls to be very interesting. Dion's personal popularity issues aren't exactly news.
 
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