North-central B.C. Independent MLA Bob Simpson says the B.C. Liberal government should expand its harmonized sales tax debate into a comprehensive assessment of the province's tax and revenue regime.
The B.C. Liberal government announced this week it will be seeking public input on how the HST could be changed to get people to vote in favour of keeping the new tax.
While new Liberal Premier Christy Clark moved up the date of the vote to June 24 from September, the public has until July 22 to have their mail-in ballots into Elections B.C.
The "talking taxes" pubic engagement process will begin next week, and the HST changes will be known before the vote. The engagement process -- for which there is no cost yet -- was in addition to a $1.7-million public information campaign announced by the Liberals.
Simpson, who represents Cariboo North and lives in Quesnel, said he believes it's inappropriate for the Liberals to be selling changes to make the HST more palatable.
Instead, the Liberals should release an independent panel report on the HST quickly, giving it wide dissemination. In addition, it should restrict the dialogue on the HST to $500,000 it has already said will be split between the yes and no sides.
At the same time, the Liberals should expand the consultation to include a larger discussion of taxes, revenues and public services because the public is also angry about a barrage of other tax and cost increases it is facing. "There's a a bigger under-current dialogue occurring that if you just come in and do a sell job on the HST and improving it, you miss the whole point," said Simpson, who was kicked from the NDP caucus last year for criticizing leader Carole James.
James was later ousted in a caucus revolt, but Simpson decided to sit as an Independent.
The 12 per cent harmonized sales tax, which came into effect July 1, 2010 replaced the federal five per cent GST and the provincial seven per cent sales tax. Its introduction caused a public furor, and, in part, led to the resignation of Premier Gordon Campbell half way into his third term.
The B.C. Liberal government decided to move to a referendum after anti-HST forces led by former-B.C. premier Bill Vander Zalm launched a successful initiative petition that gathered more than 700,000 signatures provincewide.
The B.C. Liberal government argued introducing the HST was the single biggest action the government could take to boost the ailing economy. The Liberals say the $2-billion savings from the HST to the business sector will be reinvested in the economy and passed on to consumers.
Critics said it was a huge, unfair tax shift from corporations to consumers.
