Thank you, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Canada needed a belly laugh and you came through.
Axing the GST on Christmas trees is so shameless, so hilariously cheesy, so predictably Trudeau, that one can only hoot at this latest effort to climb out of the political pit he dug for the Liberals.
The GST will be lifted from Dec. 14 until Feb. 15 on almost anything a family might buy at Christmas, including food, some booze, toys, restaurant meals (also takeout), snacks, toddler car seats and much more.
Diapers aren’t exactly a Christmas item, but they get plenty of seasonal use and are therefore exempt.
The GST move will deprive the federal treasury of $1.6 billion. Another measure, a spring payment of $250 for everyone earning under $150,000 a year, will cost a stunning $4.6 billion.
That pre-election giveaway is expected to cover 18.7 million Canadians, the entire remnants of the middle class.
The whole program is the Liberals’ gasping effort to get some traction with voters. They also hope to spike the Conservatives’ big gun, the demand to abolish the carbon tax.
It’s hard for Leader Pierre Poilievre to argue against any tax cut when he spends half his time demanding one. But he calls this “a two-month tax trick” and points to big carbon tax increases still to come.
Many hard-pressed Canadians will happily take the break, even if they sneer at the cynicism.
In Alberta the benefit is five per cent, the GST amount, but the federal measure also covers Harmonized Sales Tax in other provinces. Ontarians will suddenly pay 13 per cent less for scores of items.
Early reaction from a sampling of merchants is that overall sales could increase, although people might hold off buying until the break takes effect Dec. 14 (if it passes in the Commons.)
Stores could see a madhouse rush in the 10 days before Christmas.
Merchants will be expected to go into their systems and remove items suddenly exempted from the GST.
In Calgary, Owl’s Nest Books co-owner Judith Duthie says it shouldn’t be difficult to delete books and puzzles, two of the store’s key items. After a quick look around the store, she realized that almost everything she sells will be exempt.
But larger stores selling many types of items will have a bigger job figuring out what to exempt. The federal guide — titled More money in your pocket: A tax break for all Canadians — is almost insanely detailed and complicated.
Just a few examples of your federal civil service at work on the hundreds of exempted items: “Children’s diapers: meaning a product designed for babies or children and that is a diaper, a diaper insert or liner, a training pant, or a rubber pant designed for use in conjunction with any of those items.”
They’re clear on one thing: a diaper must be a diaper.
Further: “Candies; confectionary classed as candy or goods sold as candies (e.g., candy floss, chewing gum, and chocolate); fruits, seeds, nuts or popcorn coated or treated with candy, chocolate, honey, molasses, sugar, syrup, or artificial sweeteners.”
“Chips, crisps, puffs, curls, or sticks (e.g., potato chips, corn chips, cheese puffs, potato sticks, bacon crisps, and cheese curls), popcorn, brittle pretzels, and salted nuts or seeds.”
I envisage a room full of officials debating the meaning of the cheese puff.
This government wants your family to snack its way through Christmas. Diabetes measures to follow.
Books are exempt from GST/HST, but with many side definitions and caveats, including the exclusion from tax relief of children’s colouring books and other items that might encourage creativity.
Alberta government wonks had a scornful look at the rules Wednesday afternoon. One pointed out that buyers might return gifts they’ve already bought, hoping to buy again for less on Dec. 14.
He may be right. This could be chaos, especially in high GST/HST provinces.
The Liberals appear to have put as much work into this, although not better work, than they did with major legislation like the deeply flawed Impact Assessment Act.
This is trivial by comparison, but for the Liberals even more meaningful. It’s about buying another minority government.
With that in mind, enjoy your tax-free “Christmas trees or similar decorative trees, whether natural or artificial.”
Don Braid’s column appears regularly in the Herald
X: @DonBraid