B.C. New Democrat MLAs plan to spend the August holiday weekend circulating petitions opposing the provincial government's plans to introduce a harmonized sales tax.The 12 per cent harmonized sales tax (HST) combines the seven per cent provincial sales tax and the five per cent GST, and is scheduled to take effect next July. But provincial NDP Leader Carole James said the New Democrats are hoping to thwart the plan and are circulating a petition that says the Liberal government has no mandate to introduce the tax."We're going to be circulating this wide and far all over this province," James told CBC News on Friday."We're going to make sure it's out with the public. We really have heard an outcry from people who have been asking for this," James said. The way B.C.'s HST will be applied means consumers will pay an extra seven per cent tax on many items that were previously exempt from the PST, such as restaurant meals, airline tickets, funerals, haircuts, and the portion of the price of new homes over $400,000.James said the HST is an issue that crosses party boundaries.On Thursday, former B.C. Social Credit premier Bill Vander Zalm urged people to take to the streets in protest against the harmonized tax.
Link to HST petition: http://www.bcndp.ca/hstpetition----------------
Don Quixote Note:
"With the proposed point-of-sale rebate for motor fuels, the provincial portion of the B.C. HST would not apply to gasoline, diesel, marine diesel or aviation fuel including biofuels components used in a motor vehicle, boat or aircraft to the carbon tax payable on those fuels.
However, the B.C. HST will be applied on top of the purchase price including any carbon tax on all other fuels."
This effectively means that all Residential users of electricity (Hydro) and natural gas (Terasen) that are exempt presently from PST will now have that extra 7% charged on their utility bills. Also despite the Finance Minister's concern expressed when the Feds charged GST on the Provincial Carbon Tax it would appear that this tax on a tax will become a Provincial reality on July 1, 2010. (Canada Day)
BC Finance Minister Colin Hansen says there is nothing he can do. "I personally disagree with the concept of a tax on a tax but that's the way the federal government has the GST set up,'' he said.
Actual E-Mail Reply from Finance minister Oct 2, 2008 regarding GST on Carbon tax.
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