HST - Vote "Yes" to Extinguish

[Shauna Roed]

the hst hurts the little guy it needs to go and will go i truly believe this at least with the pst i didnt have to pay tax on my sons healthy school snacks it has made it so hard on low income families that i know quite few kids who have to go to school with no snacks because parents cant afford the extra costs in their food bills the hst isnt fair and needs to go

[Jenna Kunz]

so they're allowed to have pro HST commercials on tv, but no anti-HST commercials on tv, and now people arent allowed to have anti HST sign either... this is bullsh*t!!

[myths]

The BC Liberal “myths” about the HST just keep piling up.

We don’t have the budget to fight the lies, we need your help. Keep the message going by forwarding this link to all the people you know and ask them to do the same.

Following is their latest Top Seven – all new and misleading as ever – HST Myths:

1. The HST is now 10% – False
The HST is 12% and will not be 10% for three years – if ever. There will be an election before that, and even if the HST were to miraculously drop to 10% – it will still apply to hundreds more goods and services than a 12% PST/GST for a consumer tax increase of $1.6B per year. And who says it won’t go right back up again later?

2. The HST will lower taxes – False
This one is hilarious. The HST increases taxes for British Columbians by $2.8 Billion per year. That’s an average annual increase of $500 per person – or $1208 per average family – forever. Finance Minister Falcon says if his side loses he may disregard the result and expand the PST to items previously exempt – and that’s illegal. Do you really trust this guy to cut the rate if he wins?

3. The HST will save you money – False
And the tooth fairy is going to leave you a quarter under your pillow too. To get their numbers to show the HST actually “saving” you money they are calculating only “routine purchases” and that 90% of what you pay in HST will be passed back to you in lower prices. Have you seen lower prices?… We didn’t think so.

4. The HST benefits seniors – False
Seniors and people on fixed incomes are some of the hardest hit by the HST. A one time rebate of $175 if you vote in favour of their tax in exchange for paying it for the next 10-30 years of your retirement is a deal only a snake oil salesman would offer. Why take $175 when you can vote to cancel the HST and keep all your money? How dumb do they think we are?

5. The HST benefits families – False
Next to seniors, working families are hardest hit by the HST because they are among the largest consumers and have dependent children. Bribes of $175 per child when your cost is closer to $400 a year each makes you wonder if they think all of us failed math as badly as they did. And what about a single mom with two kids going to college? She gets nothing while the Premier and Finance Minister who earn big six figure salaries get the rebate. Nice.

6. Business will pay more so you can pay less – False
A temporary increase of 2% in corporate taxes will be passed on to consumers with increased prices. Either way you pay the final bill whether it’s in HST or higher prices.

7. We will owe $1.6 Billion if we cancel the HST – False
The “Independent Panel” says the HST generated $850 million more than budgeted. Setting aside that is the biggest tax grab in history, it means government already has $850 million to repay Ottawa. BC has only received $1B, and Ottawa collected $300M more in corporate taxes under the HST than under the PST. So it’s a wash. And keeping the HST would cost British Columbians alot more than killing it – over $28 Billion in new taxes in just 10 years.

Vote YES to extinguish the HST and save your province, your democracy, and your money!

[Bill Tieleman]

What the HST is costing us – and why it should go in June’s referendum

Bill Tieleman's 24 hours/The Tyee column

Tuesday May 24, 2011


By Bill Tieleman
In terms of the revenue of the HST, it's roughly the same as the revenue we currently get from the PST.

- B.C. Finance Minister Colin Hansen, August 13, 2009

The B.C. Liberal government said they wouldn’t impose a Harmonized Sales Tax before the May 2009 election.

Afterwards they did.

Hansen and then-Premier Gordon Campbell said the HST would be “revenue neutral” for government.

Now their hand-picked Independent Panel discovered the HST is raising a whopping extra $820 million a year from your pocket.

And none of it is budgeted to pay for needed public services.


New Premier Christy Clark claims she will “fix” the HST with “smart” moves.

Yeah, right.


But the only real way to fix this dumb tax is to vote “Yes” to extinguish the HST in the binding mail ballot referendum in June.
Because it’s not hard to figure out the HST is costing you lots of money.


The HST adds an extra 7% to hundreds of goods and services that were not subject to the Provincial Sales Tax in the past.
The Independent Panel calculates that if your household family income is $40,000 to $60,000 you pay an extra $366 a year in HST.

But for a two-income earning family with both members making $50,000 each – the average B.C. wage – the HST costs you over $1,000 a year!

Those numbers are conservative and don’t include spending major coin on a home renovation or repair. A $20,000 new roof will set you back an extra $1,400 and for a $50,000 kitchen reno add $3,500.

That’s causing some consumers to pay cash to avoid the entire HST and save the total 12% tax. But it means honest businesses suffer and their customers pay more while government loses revenue to the black market.

And heaven help you if you want to buy a new home – because the HST adds 7% to anything costing over $525,000 when Vancouver’s average house price is over $1 million. That means on an $825,000 home the extra HST is a cool $21,000.

But even on everyday items you can quickly see how the HST adds up to far more than $366 a family.

My cable TV bill alone shows I’m paying $8 a month in HST while my telephone costs me $7 monthly in HST for a total of $180 on just two basic items!

My condominium fees went up because the HST is charged on cleaning, maintenance and other services – costing me an extra $160 a year.

And our family eats a lot of restaurant food at an extra 7%. Spend $2,000 a year, add $140 in HST.

Even a cappuccino or coffee and doughnut break at $4 every work day will add up to an extra $67 a year in HST.

My wife and daughter fly to Winnipeg annually to visit family – add $84 to the $1,200 ticket price or to any domestic plane, train or bus travel.

Go to a Canucks game, movie, ballet or work out at the gym or play golf and pay 7% more every time. For some, that means hundreds more in HST costs.

And the list of extra 7% HST charged is very long.


Add in taxis, parking, dry cleaning, vitamins, massage therapy, over-the-counter medications, newspaper and magazine subscriptions, bicycles, safety helmets, camping sites, shoe repair, some school supplies, snack foods, haircuts, manicures and pedicures, tailoring, landscaping, accounting, veterinarian visits, computer and appliance repairs – even wedding planners and funerals cost 7% more!
But don’t worry – a few things actually have slightly less tax with the HST.
Luxury vehicles worth more than $55,000 and disposable baby diapers – go crazy!

The enormous cost of this tax is why I helped form Fight HST with former Premier Bill Vander Zalm, former Unity Party leader Chris Delaney and others, which led a successful citizens Initiative campaign that forced this referendum.

The B.C. Liberal government is spending $5 million of your tax dollars on an advertising campaign telling you to keep the HST.

Big businesses in the misnamed Smart Tax Alliance are spending many millions more on pricey TV ads with accountants who say the HST is “good” for you.

Nonsense! Vote Yes to extinguish the HST – and save your money!

[Peter Tan]

Ok we are being told by the so called smart tax alliance that the tax is 10% when it isn't. We are also being told that the HST at 10% will save the average family $120 annually when it won't (the smart tax alliance factored in that 90% of the HST would come back to consumers in reduced prices -not going to happen). Who telling lies?

[Mark G.]

If they can lower the HST by 2% to 10 Percent, then they could do the same thing with the GST and PST. Another straw man offer from the pro HST business barons. The HST is a way for federal tax collectors to keep a better eye on everyone. Gordon Campbell sold BC out.

[Jim-Surrey]

The Liberals screwed up BIG TIME so grabbed the HST offer from the Feds and lied to us they hadn't. It has done NOTHING but hit us in the pocket book with a lousy economy still here. SO the lie it will help is exactly that, another lie. NO savings have been passed on by retailers, in fact everything has gone UP.The only real smart thing to do is eliminate the HST so the consumer has more money to spend. That is and always has been what drives a good economy. More taxes on MORE items doesn't!So YES eliminate the HST!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Ron 43]

Plain and simple, clark and her liberals are full of lies, just like campbell!! For the first time in my 68 years I will vote for the NDP when the election comes around!

[John]

The Liberals using "TAXPAYERS" money to promote THEIR AGENDA is on the verge of being criminal. Spending money on those ridiculous stick men ads especiallly during the Stanley cup playoffs must cost a fortune. One more reason the dump Clark and her Liberals. Don't forget even if you vote in favour of the HST you won't see it drop to 10% for 3 years.

[Crackerman]

I am tired of the lies and tired of this fiberal government... ...The ads are not just misleading, they are lying through their teeth ! ... One ad clearly states if you vote no to keep the HST you will pay less taxes... LIES, the percentage may be less but more items are taxed so that means by voting no to keep the HST you are in fact voting for higher taxes... the stick man ads are not neutral like they claim either, it clearly shows the "burden" of a gst/pst sandwich board around the neck while showing the hst as a simple sticker on the board... absolutely done that way on purpose to mislead the public ! ... I will be voting to get rid of this unjustified tax burden with a big YES and I will be voting to get rid of this LYING Fiberal party when the queen b**ch decides to allow the real voters in this province to pick the person for the top job !