The Cost of Bad Policy

Both budget time and tax season is upon us, and top of mind is how Canadians are feeling the burden of increased taxes, higher prices from inflation, and are worrying about the direction of Canada’s finances as recession fears occupy the news cycle.

Despite the Liberals’ talk about investing in Canadians and vows to “exercise fiscal restraint” in the upcoming budget, Chrystia Freeland and Justin Trudeau’s track record of poor decision making and fiscal recklessness speaks volumes. Liberal spending has fueled the inflation crisis. Inflation is a hidden tax hurting Canadians. The increased spending by the Liberals and the willingness by the Bank of Canada (who prints money and controls the interest rates) to fund Liberal spending, has led to more money in the economy and devaluing pay cheques. Inflation is literally eating away at Canadians’ ability to purchase everything from homes to gas to groceries.

On the issue of taxes, the Liberals have a habit of raising taxes. There are a couple of recent increases I would like to highlight. You may have heard of the unused housing tax (UHT), a program that not only taxes homes that are not lived in but also has created chaos with tax filers who are not aware of the rule or the penalties if not filed. And contrary to Parliament’s will, the alcohol excise tax will increase taxes on beer, wine and spirits by 6.3% on April 1 through an inflation escalator, putting many small and medium sized businesses at risk.

And what is a discussion about taxes without mentioning the most detrimental tax of them all, the carbon tax set to also increase on April 1st. It is a tax on everything, and not only contributes to inflation, but it also has a disproportionate affect on rural and energy producing regions. I recently shared in the House of Commons a simple example to illustrate the consequences of the carbon tax. I used a loaf of bread as an example; the farmer grows and harvests the grain is forced to pay additional costs at every step of that process, and on the inputs. The trucker who transports the grain is forced to pay the carbon tax. The baker who bakes the bread is forced to incur more costs to heat his/her shop. And on it goes. By the time the bread is put on grocery store shelves, the consumer is not only paying increased costs due to inflation cost pressures because of commodities, resulting in the carbon tax costs affecting every part of the supply chain.

Conservatives understand how much everyday, hardworking Canadians mean to the success of Canada. The priorities of the Conservative plan that have called on the Liberals to implement is to ‘make Canada work for the people who work’ are:

1. Bring home powerful paycheques with lower taxes, so hard work pays off again.

2. Bring home lower prices by ending inflationary carbon tax hikes & deficit spending that drive up inflation & interest rates.

3. Bring homes people can afford by removing government gatekeepers to free up land and speed up building permits.

I am not optimistic that the Liberals will follow our advice, as past behaviour is the best indicator of future behaviour. The Trudeau Liberals seem to forget that the consequences of their policies hurt Canadians. That is why Canada’s Conservatives are outlining a tangible plan that will help Canadians succeed and is something I will be proud to help implement as a part of a future Pierre Poilievre-led Government.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this column, you are encouraged to write Damien at 4945-50th Street, Camrose, Alberta, T4V 1P9, call 780-608-4600, text 403-575-5625, or e-mail damien.kurek@parl.gc.ca. You can also stay up to date with Damien by following him on social media @dckurek. If you need of assistance regarding a Federal Government program, or need assistance and don’t know where to turn, feel free to reach out to MP Kurek’s office.