OTTAWA — Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland laid down a tax gauntlet for her Conservative opponents today with a motion to make the promised changes to capital gains taxes a reality.
The adjustment will mean higher tax bills for most Canadians who make more than $250,000 in profits in a single year from capital income like the sale of secondary properties or stock options.
Freeland is billing the change as a matter of fairness to ensure millionaires aren’t paying a smaller tax rate than middle-class income earners like nurses and teachers.
By introducing the changes in a stand-alone motion she is forcing the Conservatives to vote in favour of raising taxes or risk being tagged as the party of millionaires if they vote against it.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has dodged questions about his party’s stance on the change.
Freeland’s move comes at a time when all politicians on Parliament Hill are jockeying to be seen as the most sympathetic to the plight of Canadians suffering from the soaring cost of living.