Dear Sir:
British Columbians finally had their chance to express their opinion about harmonized sales tax.
It is clear we do not want a tax that hurts ordinary people for the benefit of corporations and we have had enough of underhanded and deceitful actions by the B.C. Liberal government.
Of course Gordon Campbell took a hit for the team but let’s not forget that the whole caucus and its ministers et al that supported him. Incidentally Mr. Campbell will be all right with this huge salary for his new position in England and his pension. He likely has a chauffeur as driving on the left is difficult, especially if one is under the influence. Moreover, to be left of anything is a totally new experience for him.
Our new premier is talking doom and gloom threatening us with further cuts to services and more user fees, limiting the loss of $2 billion the government claims cancelling this existing HST will cost.
While she is announcing that she will listen to the people and do what’s right, she and her colleagues are still spin doctoring.
A number of questions need answers: Why should it take two years to cancel the tax that the same government dreamt up in a couple of weeks and installed in a few months?
The HST, will in the four years it will exist, collect an estimated $6 billion so why the moaning and groaning, wringing of hands. The sky is not falling. In fact, that kind of money will make their huge deficit look better.
According to the government and its ministers, cancelling the tax will create a $2 billion shortfall and will create disaster and cancel services, while the $2 billion loss from two per cent less tax, the bribe the government and the stickmen were trying to buy us with would have no impact – not so.
BC Liberals, and this is not an oxymoron, assumed that people were gullible enough to fall for that desperate move of a bribe. Not so.
By the way if you need some stickmen drawn, the people who spent millions of your tax dollars trying to convince you that HST is good for you, are looking for work.
So will this experience change the premier and the government in Victoria? Not likely. So far the spin goes on and to quote my dear friend from Yukon Smith, “Even if a leopard loses its spots it is still a big cat.”
John Jensen, Terrace, BC