Eliminating PST appeals to masses
Dear Editor:
The latest BC Liberal promise to appeal to the masses is the bright idea of eliminating the provincial sales tax, which they claim will stimulate economic growth across the province.
While it is true that the economy needs support in order to recover, this is not a viable solution. For decades, we have measured economic success on GDP growth, a human-centric view which continuously creates short term solutions to long-term problems, which has led to the degradation of our environment and also our quality of life.
The myth of the individual as needing to “save up” to “get ahead,” is not only outdated, but also fails to take into account the fact that in order to save money, you need to have money which can be saved.
When millions of British Columbians are facing increased unemployment, rental scarcity, rising real estate prices, and food insecurity, how are they supposed to prioritize saving when their basic needs are not even being met?
Andrew Wilkinson, Dan Ashton, and their supporters would have you believe the PST cut is the solution, but let’s view this through the lens of an average B.C. resident. Basic groceries, public transportation, prescription medication, rent, and children’s clothing are already not subject to PST. This means that most families’ basic needs are already free from a tax which aids in providing essential government services which those same individuals rely on in order to have the remainder of their needs met.
This tax cut will disproportionately benefit those individuals who are already financially well-off, at the expense of the majority, who will be told that they one day will be able to reach this status too, despite having a government which will be actively supporting a system designed to hold them down.
The opioid epidemic, and the concurrent pandemic is highlighting just a few issues which have needed addressing in this province for years and how can one think that this is a viable step toward solving these problems because our GDP will increase?
The role of government is to best utilize its resources for the benefit of the people both in times of prosperity and uncertainty. British Columbians, for their economic and mental sake, deserve a stable government which has demonstrated that it will provide a hand up when they are down, and not a hand-out for the wealthy when there are everyday people still struggling.
Ajeet Brar
Penticton