Letters to the editor – September 30, 2021

Housing costs more than average tax bill

Re: “ Grocery buyers paying Covid-19 tax,” Sept. 9, page 11.

Sylvian Charlebois is at it again, telling stories and promoting inflation.

Usually he sticks to half truths, but this time he has gone beyond that, when he says that “the average Canadian pays more in taxes than for food, clothing and housing or mortgage combined.”

According to Statistics Canada, for 2019 the median market income for families was $85,600 and median income tax was $12,200.

Add to the taxes a few thousand in sales taxes and property tax and then compare the taxes to housing costs.

“ The largest household expense was shelter ($20,200).

Homeowners with mortgages allocated one-third of their total goods and services spending to shelter costs ($30,734).

“Renter households spent $14,401 on shelter in 2019.”

Most Canadians spend more on housing than they pay in taxes.

If one were to add the very, very rich to the average, then Sylvian may be correct. The very, very rich pay a lot of income tax. But to call that group “the average Canadian “ is (wrong).

Fred Waddy
Colpitts, N.B.

Applying the GST to carbon tax not right

Spent the afternoon going through my accounting system and discovered some tax thing going on that really makes no sense. All bills that have carbon tax on them also have GST. Everyone except the provincial utility charges carbon tax and GST on the bill total. When I get to the utility bills, I am being charged GST upon the carbon tax.

In discussion with business people and viewing their bills to me, carbon tax and the GST are charged only upon the original bill total with no GST upon carbon tax. One billing person told me it is not right to charge tax on tax.

Actually, if it was fine, how come we pay provincial tax and GST on the original bill total and no GST upon the bill total plus the provincial tax. Double taxing me, I feel, is theft.

Both GST and the carbon tax are federal. I was told to contact the Canada Revenue Agency regarding that. Tried and got zero response. Tax on a bill is not nice but taxing on tax, I say, is wrong.

Delwyn Jansen
Humboldt, Sask.

Source: producer.com