Thornhill PC candidate Gila Martow supports subway taxes, undercuts Hudak's policy

After trying and failing to land a star candidate, Tim Hudak has settled for former Conservative riding association president Gila Martow as his candidate in Thornhill to replace his Finance spokesperson Peter Shurman, who resigned after billing you $20 grand to pay for a second home while living 150 kilometers outside a his riding, which is only a half-hour drive from Queen's Park.

As a GTA seat, transit will almost certainly be a hot issue, and while it isn't surprising to see Hudak and his backroom boys pushing a dubious "we'll build massive infrastructure projects for free" line, Hudak's candidate doesn't seem to buy it, suggesting not just one, but two different subway taxes.

Ontario needs dedicated revenue tools to help make transit upgrades to create jobs and reduce gridlock a reality. Hudak's candidate Gila Martow seems to realize that, even if Hudak doesn't. This by-election campaign, will Ms. Martow stand behind her support for revenue tools, or will she flip-flop and support Tim Hudak's unrealistic schemes?

Leadership on the economy

Premier Dalton McGuinty has said the tax rate on new investment by small businesses will be reduced by 55%. Ontario's economic strength depends on the strength of our businesses, large and small. That's why Ontario Liberals are working with small businesses to free up some of their resources so they can invest back into themselves and grow even stronger.

When the changes are fully implemented, the tax rate on new investment for small businesses will be reduced by 55% — good news for employers such as farms, retailers and smaller manufacturers. When small businesses succeed, we all succeed. They bring a lot to Ontario communities — good jobs, and great products.

The Ontario Liberal platform, "Forward. Together." includes the next steps to help small businesses. Ontario Liberals will:

-Triple the number of successful start-ups in the next five years by providing incentives for risk capital

-Enhance and increase support for young entrepreneurs, and for small and medium businesses to access new trade markets

-Create a new Southwestern Ontario Economic Development Fund and make the Eastern Ontario Development Fund and the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund permanent.

Ontario Liberals have already cut the business tax rate from 5.5 per cent to 4.5 — which will fall to 4.0 per cent under the Ontario Liberal Plan.

The Hudak PCs $14 billion hole would also mean deep cuts to education, depriving us of the highly skilled workers who attract new business to Ontario. The Horwath NDP would introduce a crushing $9 billion in job-killing taxes. Both would take Ontario off track at the worst time.

Ontario Liberals are working to make Ontario the place to be when it comes to building your business. Only Ontario Liberals have a plan to keep Ontario moving forward, together.

The HST: It's about innovation

Interesting article from the left coast: http://www.vancouversun.com/opinion/British+Columbia+Ontario+need/2964963/story.html

At a time when we are getting into an economic recovery, introducing tax reforms like the HST, and the personal tax cuts for 93% of Ontario are the most important things we can be doing to improve our innovation. The HST, which will remove the tax burden from each stage of production to a much flatter and simpler system which will make us more competitive and help fuel innovation, by making it easier for companies to do business here and create jobs. The times, and the economy have changed, and it would be foolish to think, like the opposition does, that Ontario can go back to the way things were. The province needs to take action to make our workers more productive, our businesses more innovative, and our economy more secure.

The article gives a practical example:


A recent report from Statistics Canada shows we are moving in the wrong direction. Instead of helping us stay competitive by adding machinery and equipment, Canada had a record level drop in this kind of investment during the last recession. In the short run, this had a small benefit: companies that were not spending on improving productivity could afford to keep more workers on and minimize unemployment.

HST will make it easier to become more productive.

In the long run, not investing in the tools that will increase productivity is like not giving your child needed medical treatment because it will hurt. Less productive companies may end up with all their workers becoming unemployed as they lose their customers to more productive producers.

There are many things we can do to improve our economy and our job base. We can undertake research and apply new, innovative ideas. We can add human capital, training workers at all levels.

But the fastest and most immediate thing we can do is to apply more of the machinery, equipment and technology that already exists. By reducing the cost of investment for companies, the HST will make it easier for us to do this.

Find out more at http://www.rev.gov.on.ca/en/taxchange/

The Tory tax on jobs

Watch my Hudak Sales Tax video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYZRrlYagos

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http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/ei-premiums-expected-to-rise-by-535/article1535506/

With our economy still recovering, the last thing Canadian workers need is lost wages, but the Tory increases in EI premiums effectively punish hard working Canadians for having a job. According to the parliamentary budget office, the hike will mean per about $223 more being paid by the employee and $312 by the employer, punishing both those who work and those who run businesses. At a time when we need innovation in our economy, and to get more Canadians working, this Tory stealth tax on both business and workers is the last thing we need to get out of recession.