I was a little taken aback by Vaughn Palmer's pro-HST, fear mongering editorial in your July 4 edition. In it he states that if we vote to do away with the tax, the province can't back out of the deal with the feds until July 1, 2015, according to the Comprehensive Integrated Tax Coordination Agreement (CITCA) dated November 2009.
He didn't mention that CITCA was followed by the reciprocal taxation agreement, effective July 1, 2010, which states: "This agreement shall end on December 31, 2015, except if either party terminates the agreement earlier by giving six months' notice in writing to the other party."
Then there was the HST Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), signed July 2009, which on the title page is written: "Confidential Pending British Columbia Announcement."
I find it hard to believe that such important, pivotal, provincial-federal tax legislation can be negotiated, drafted, and ratified in just over two months between May 12 when Gordon Campbell was re-elected and July 23 when Colin Hansen signed the MOA.
The parents' advisory council at my daughter's elementary school took longer than that to decide on how to implement a plan for purchasing a new Jungle Jim play centre.
Also, Mr. Palmer states that of the $1.6 billion, the $580 million that has not been banked by the province cannot be put on hold pending the results of the referendum because, according to Finance Minister Kevin Falcon and "generally accepted accounting rules," the entire amount has already been booked as revenue, which will become a liability should B.C. taxpayers decide they don't want the HST.
Interesting figure that $1.6 billion. And isn't it a coincidence that according to a May 8, 2007 CTV news report, $1.63 billion was the projected cost of the 2010 Olympics.
Lastly, Mr. Palmer points out that: "No province has ever fully merged its sales tax with the federal one, then reversed direction."
The operative word is "fully." In Saskatchewan, the changeover to the HST commenced April 1, 1991.
NDP Roy Romanov took over power on Oct. 21 from Conservative Grant Devine, and in December the HST was repealed retroactive to the day after the election, much to the delight of the voters who made it quite clear that the HST was unacceptable.
We in B.C. can do the same, contrary to intimidating editorials - as well as those offensive stickman ads.
Joanne Schilling
Prince George
