Letter to the editor
Dear editor,
Canadians should get ready to pay more for everyday goods. Prime Minister Harper and the Conservative government is imposing a tax grab on families by hiking tariffs on everything from coffee makers to bicycles.
A tariff is a tax, and many of the goods sold in Canadian stores come from countries that will soon get caught up in higher tariffs when they are brought into Canada, raising prices. Costs for baby cribs, vacuum cleaners, barbecues and more will go up by an average of 3%.
All in all, it amounts to a $330 million a-year tax grab from families struggling to make ends meet. It will drain our businesses and drive consumers across the border.
The measures also hit digital music players too—despite solemn Conservative pledges to never introduce an “iPod tax.”
Other tax hikes in the federal budget—on everything from hospital parking to life insurance—will cost Canadians hundreds of millions more.
Incredibly, the Conservatives deny up and down that they are raising taxes—as if your wallet somehow just gets lighter all on its own. Their dishonesty is disproven by all the revenue booked in their own budget numbers.
Canadians understand that governing sometimes requires difficult choices. But Mr. Harper might find that when Canadians can’t count on their own Prime Minister to give them the straight goods on taxes, they start looking for someone who can.
Yours sincerely,
Wayne
Easter, MP
Liberal Party of Canada International Trade Critic
