PBO: Liberal tax policy fails to fight inequality

Liberal tax plan will give nothing to 60% of Canadians and the biggest breaks go to the wealthy, according to a study today from the Parliamentary Budget Office. The NDP amendment to the plan would have instead benefited twice as many Canadians.

"At a time when Canadians need a government to tackle growing income and wealth inequality, the Liberals went in the opposite direction," said NDP Leader Tom Mulcair. "Today, it's been confirmed that the Liberal tax plan failed to tackle inequality."

The PBO study proves that most Canadians won't receive any benefit whatsoever under the Liberal government's so-called "middle class tax cut". It finds the benefits of the Liberal plan mainly go to the top 30% of income earners with the most money going to the richest 10%. In fact, even those making $200,000 will receive the maximum amount under the Liberal plan.

New Democrats proposed to modify the tax cut so that working class and middle class Canadians would benefit from the tax changes. The PBO confirmed today that the NDP plan would benefit 9 million more Canadians and have a much fairer distribution of benefits. The NDP proposal also calls for an increase to tax credits for the working poor.

"What sets New Democrats apart is our belief that the government should be tackling inequality, not compounding it," said Mulcair. "It’s not too late for the Liberals to do the right thing and implement the NDP’s tax fairness amendment."