Who do you believe is going to be a better tax fighter on the campaign trail?
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| Can you spot the Tax fighter? |
It took months for Ignatieff to roll over and vote in Parliament in support of Liberal Premier Glen Campbell and Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty on the implementation of the HST in BC and Ontario. The auditor general recommended the accounting for the implementation costs of a harmonized programs should be included in this budget. Ignatieff and his critics are very upset now that the government has adopted her recommendations?
Ignatieff has recently decided to challenge the wisdom of lowering business taxes anymore and his crack team of career politicians are ready to talk taxes and why corporations don't need any more tax breaks. Ignatieff tacking left, adopting the NDP redistribution of wealth policies has been tried before in 2008, it was called Green Shift. Some people feel it is ethical to take from productive members of society to pay for social programs. Do you?
This could have been an opportunity by Ignatieff to pick up the mantle from the Chretien-Martin Liberal tax fighters - deficit slayers by spending less, this is not. Ignatieff wants to keep taxes at their present level. He did not offer to reduce the tax burden on families or employers.
Ignatieff feels paying for more new social programs is a higher priority than the planned corporate tax reductions of Economic Action Plan. Ignatieff may feel the Canadians will agree with his views on the economy and jobs. Liberals feel the level of taxation is on small, medium and large companies is just.
“This bill is not fiscally responsible,” he said of a Bloc Québécois private-member’s bill that comes to a vote Wednesday evening. The Liberals and the NDP had supported the bill at second reading and in committee, but Mr. Ignatieff said it will be a free vote for his MPs. -Ignatieff Sept 30 2010
Ignatieff threatened to topple the government with the aid of the NDP-Bloc in May 03,2009 over the enrichment of employment insurance.
A press release on May 08, 2009 five days after the Ignatieff decided a threat was necessary to make parliament work showed an increase of 36,000 jobs. The rate remain unchanged at 8.0% .The increase in employment in April was all in full-time work. Overall employment gains for the month were spread between adult men aged 25 and over, and older women aged 55 and over. Since October, employment has declined among men aged 25 to 54 and youths 15 to 24, whereas it has increased among older workers. In April, the average hourly wage was 4.3% higher compared with the same month a year earlier. Unemployment rose from February 7.2% to 7.7% matching 2003 levels for March 2009. In April 2009 the Unemployment was 8.1%. Statistics Canada has it at 8.0%
He said if the government does not budge on jobless benefits “then we’ll have to have an election.” But he also reiterated his vow to make Parliament work and urged the public not to read any election timing into the June date of the platform. “I’m not playing games,” he said. May 03, 2009
Labour Force Survey Unemployment rate for May 2009 is 8.1% from Statistics Canada reported in June 04, 2009, two weeks before the roll-over.
Ignatieff has previously said he wants a single national eligibility standard for EI during the ongoing recession — meaning people could qualify for benefits if they've worked 360 hours in the previous 52 weeks, regardless of where they live. Currently, the eligibility criteria vary by region across the country, from 420 hours worked in Gander, N.L. to 700 hours in Winnipeg.- June 17, 2009
Fifteen months have transpired since his being steamrolled. Our unemployment is reported at 8.0% . Bill C-308 is what Ignatieff demanded when unemployment reported at 7.7%. His four ultimatums declared in early May 2009 were reduced to a Blue Ribbon Panel in mid June when unemployment was reported at 8.1%.
Ignatieff initially voted with the NDP and Bloc to pass an improved Bill that would have seen a 35% increase on employers and employees. The Federal government won praise from Unions and Association of small businesses for restricting the increase to only five per cent. Experts wanted a 15% increase to get the EI fund balanced quickly. The Federal government decided the risk of job losses and risk to the business climate would require a delay in balancing the program in the short term.
This is why governments across Canada of all ideological stripes have done just the opposite of what Mr. Ignatieff is proposing. His Liberal predecessors, former Prime Ministers Jean Chrétien and Paul Martin, understood the importance of reducing corporate taxes. That's why they dropped the federal rate to 21 per cent from 28 per cent. Many provincial governments have also cut corporate income tax rates in recent years, including NDP governments in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
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| Redistribution of Wealth is Socialism: Ignatieff where does it work? |
Ignatieff would be wise to look at what Ontario Liberal premier Dalton McGuinty has done. He increased corporate income taxes shortly after coming into power in, realized the destructive impacts of that move and did a u-turn last year, announcing a rate cut to 10 per cent from 14 per cent by 2013.
Ignatieff the tall poppy?
Anyone that seeks power to govern possesses a certain arrogance and anyone that attains power possesses the strategic skill. Therefore, in Canadian politics, arrogance and crass raw political strategy must be seen to be the character of one’s opponent. When government falls to trigger an election, Ignatieff and Harper will do their best to let the other poppy be boastful and stand too tall.- Stephen Taylor
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| September 2009: Budget Passed with NDP support. |
If Michael Ignatieff Liberals were serious about lowering the taxes and helping families why have they failed to introduce a single bill in parliament for debate on behalf of the Liberal party that actually reduce taxes or helps business? Is he just playing games with supporting the NDP-Bloc policies that he initially introduced?
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