NDP Release Fiscal Plan

Written by Peter McIntyre  107.5 KISSFM Thursday, 11 April 2013 17:42  
The N-D-P says it will expand the carbon tax, raise taxes on the highest income earners and boost corporate taxes if it's elected government next month. Finance critic Bruce Ralston says the new taxes and reallocation of other funds will give the N-D-P 300 million dollars in its first year in government. He says it's better to get the bad news out of the way early. ''We're making difficult decisions in the sense that we are announcing tax increases before we announce our spending, not after the election." Vernon Monashee NDP candidate Mark Olsen says the party will release details on new spending in its platform next week -- once the election campaign is officially under way. Olsen says the personal tax hike would only impact the highest income earners, over $150,000. "That only affects two percent of the income earners, so 98 percent of taxpayers will not be affected by our increases," Olsen told Kiss FM. Liberal Finance Minister Mike de Jong says the N-D-P plan will hike spending by up to five billion dollars, while BC Conservative leader John Cummins say it would be a "job killer" and hurt the economy.