Trudeau in bracket he says benefits from tax avoidance

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau can draw on personal experience when he claims that many small businesses are used by wealthy people to avoid paying taxes.

Trudeau was asked about his plans for changes to taxation of small businesses during an interview with CBC, broadcast Tuesday.

“A large percentage of small businesses are actually just ways for wealthier Canadians to save on their taxes,” he said. “We want to reward the people who are actually creating jobs, and contributing in concrete ways. So there’s a little tweaking to do around that.”

Trudeau himself was involved in at least three small businesses that were federally incorporated, one of which he used to receive income for paid speaking events in 200611. He was the owner and sole director of JPJT Canada Inc., a speaking business that earned him about $1.3 million.

At the time, Trudeau was also listed as a director of two other corporations:

90562 Canada Inc., the federal corporation that held a portfolio of securities that were part of the inheritance from his father, Pierre Trudeau, he shared with his brother, Alexandre. The securities were managed by Montreal investment firm Jarislowsky Fraser. The corporation was dissolved in December 2013.

7664699 Canada Inc., Trudeau’s personal holding company, which was used when the inheritance was split up. In 2013, the company listed $958,000 in short-term investments and $255,000 in cash.

Because he had incorporated, Trudeau could have lowered his personal tax by having any speaking-related expenses paid through JPJT Canada.

It is not known what was deducted as expenses from the revenue JPJT Canada generated or how much money, if any, the use of the corporation saved him in personal income taxes.