HST Referrandom

[Username]

Well banja, I can't change your beliefs about any employer or government.

However, let's take a look at the flipside of the coin. If business slows, do you think that employer will keep those employees or lay them off?

  Kev

[DKaz]

If I owned a business, I would lower prices if I determine the need to based on my competition, and I would hire more people if those people were going to make me more money. Whatever tax policy exists in the end will factor somewhat into my business decisions but there are so many variables it's hard to tell.

What worries me is what Kev said, a company making $5 million in profits here, can decide that they could make an extra $100,000 up to a quarter million a year in Toronto due to Ontario's tax policy and move their main operations over there. Now you've lost most of those jobs maybe except a core group the company wants to maintain in Vancouver to serve clients here, they're going to switch to Ontario based suppliers to take full advantage of the HST system. Mind you, we don't have many corporate headquarters in BC to begin with. Most of them are in Calgary or Toronto.

Then there's the deficit, I'm worried the Evergreen Line may not go through after all which is not only bad for Metro Vancouver, those are lost construction jobs, and we certainly could use more stimulus/job creation in our fragile economy.

[banjaboy]

Of course, lay off because its the easiest way to instantly save $$$, its not always the best way to save but its instant bottom line savings. Its a lot harder for an employer to actually think about ways of cutting costs, thats my experience of the workplace. I have worked for a companies that took that slash and burn approach where we, the employees could see ways to save $$$ without as many layoffs.

I just dont trust employers or government to always do the best thing. Where politics and money are involved, the right thing is not always the approach they take.

[zoomerboomer]

Bottom line is it's a friggin mess created by a bunch of incompetent political whores and their advisors/handlers.  
I mourn for what Alberta could be now and could have been had we had someone other than Klein and his mentally deficient cronies managing this province. 
The reason:  their own self interest; not that of the province!

[Keiichi]

BC's GDP has been outpacing the national average for years and not because of the HST.

BC GDP year over year % change
2004 - 3.6
2005 - 4.7
2006 - 4.1
2007 - 3.0
2008 - 0.2
2009 - -1.8
2010 - 4.0

I was refuting your statement that our economy was booming. Overall, the economy had slowed in 2008 & 2009, outpacing the national economy or not.

  Kev

Booming was probably the wrong word, but being better than the rest of Canada is pretty good no?  I didn't go and pull Ontario's number, but for 2008, 2009, and 2010 I believe we were higher than them as well (in percentage change that is...).

I just pulled these numbers to show that correlation between our boost in the economy compared to the rest of Canada and the HST is not really that high.  We've had a pretty good economy without the HST and to say that the last boost in 2010 was in some way related to the HST is not necessarily correct.

It just bugs me when the HST is propped up and used as the reason for our economic situation and I'm sure if our economy gets a downturn just like 2008, 2009, that it will be blamed that the PST was brought in....when in the grand scheme of things, the correlation is based on things greater than HST/PST.

[banjaboy]

I think the  bigger issue is a company moving offshore, THATS the real scary thing in my view. I agree 100% with what Kev said, if a company feels its cheaper to operate in Ontario and they can get the workers from there,they will go, thats their right. HST is dead here, no government will ever touch it again with a 10 foot pole. Its just so sad that its gone because so many people voted it out for the wrong reason, I just cant get my head around that.

The Evergreen line? Wow, theres a bag of snakes!!! I have my theory on who should pay for public transport but thats another thread for another day lol!!!!!!

[M Speed]

No a tax person but aren't many businesses had PST exempt when they purchase goods for resell purpose?

No

  Kev

are you sure as back when I was in the computer business, I get PST exempt for the products I buy to resell. I have to pay GST only on the goods. I need to register with the vendors with my PST certificate.