Maybe Liberal MPs should lose some of their loopholes

Editor: Am I living a repeat of the late 1960s when a prime minister by the name of Trudeau talked about wanting to help the middle class (the Just Society), but that meant his version of that group (and few, if any, lived west of southern Ontario)?

It is difficult, I’m sure, for someone who has never had to risk starting, let alone trying to maintain, a small business, to understand why there is opposition to his great plan to level the playing field so that there would only be people working for someone else on salary. So let me try to help out. The first approach to tax reform, should be tax reform — level the field. Institute a flat tax system with no deductions at all — let each person decide where s/he wants to spend/donate/give money.

Second option: when a political party promises to help the middle class and gets elected, it should then reduce the salaries of its members (not those of opposition members) to the average salary of the middle class with NO tax exemptions for any of its MP perks.

That way, it would truly know what the middle class feels like. Furthermore, for all MPs, restore the five-day work week at Parliament and only one paid return flight or drive each month to the constituency (probably on a holiday).

With the variety of interactive media now available, it is much easier to keep in touch, so travelling back every week-end is not a very green-friendly action. Parliament should be required to work 10 weeks of every season ñ still less than their constituents, but at least enough to understand how difficult it is to balance all aspects of life including one’s personal budget.

Third option: eliminate any taxfree benefits for all MPs and dissolve the pension fund (make this dissolution retroactive so politicians can experience what it is like when they change laws midstream or without any serious long-term warning) and simply institute a matching-funds contribution system using the CPP process.

And, make each MP pay both the employer and employee contributions to UIC and CPP (and then make them ineligible to collect UIC).

These are just a few ideas that should be considered by Mr. Moreau and Mr. Selfie. Remember, the problem was not dreamed up by the gurus in the Finance Department. They do their share of off-piste thinking, but this time it was all political ñ so let’s make the solution all about the politicians.

Mr. Albas, Mr. Canning — join together and push these options to the forefront.

Glenn W. Sinclair, Penticton