HST bad for Ontario economy, Tory leader says

Jordan Press
Kingston Whig Standard

Combining the GST and PST into one tax will make home ownership unaffordable for young families in Ontario, says the leader of the province’s official opposition party.

Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak said the Liberal plan to create a harmonized sales tax is a “massive tax grab” that won’t help Ontario’s struggling economy.

The Tories say that the new tax, which will add the 8% provincial sales tax to previously untaxed items, will add up to $1,300 to the cost of buying the average home in Kingston.

That could put several families off of buying a new home, especially first-time buyers, Hudak said.

With the automotive sector drowning in red ink and private industries having a rough time, the province needs the housing and construction sector “to be firing on all cylinders” to drive the economy, he said.

“A tax hike at any time is bad economics. A tax hike in bad economic times will kill jobs and hurt families,” Hudak said.

“During these tough economic times, I can’t believe our current government would contemplate bringing in a massive tax hike.”

The new tax comes into effect July 1, 2010. The province says combining the two taxes will make Ontario more competitive when it exports goods, and could save businesses $3 billion annually from the costs of some goods that they can’t deduct the PST from.