Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford It’s time to grade Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s record after half a decade in office. No matter how you slice it, Ford isn’t coming anywhere close to the taxpayer honour roll. Ford deserves a failing grade on taxes, deficits and debt. But with more than two years left in his […]
Photo credit: Twitter/Tim Houston Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston is driving his province towards a fiscal cliff. If he doesn’t change course soon, taxpayers will be in for a world of hurt. Houston didn’t inherit a rosy financial situation. In the previous Liberal government’s final budget before Houston won the 2021 election, former premier […]
Fiscal update highlights shifts in debt, corporate aid, and government size. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug FordPhoto credit: Twitter/Doug Ford The Ford government tabled its fall economic update earlier this month. If anyone doubted that Ford and Trudeau were cut from the same cloth, the numbers extinguish that doubt. It’s become clear that Ford has adopted […]
Until recently no one in the Trudeau government’s Liberal caucus was willing to stand up and tell the truth on carbon taxes. Newfoundland and Labrador MP Ken McDonald (pictured) finally broke that trend. Photo credit: Facebook/Ken McDonald The dam has finally broken in the Liberal caucus with some MPs starting to admit the federal […]
Those who argue for higher taxes to solve Toronto’s budget woes continuously claim Torontonians are undertaxed, because property tax rates are lower than in neighbouring municipalities. That argument deserves two separate responses. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons It’s time to finally bust a myth: Torontonians do not have a lower tax burden than taxpayers in […]
Doug Ford’s government is anything but the lean, efficient administration he promised taxpayers. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford The man who once promised a leaner, more efficient and effective government at Queen’s Park has instead allowed it to balloon larger than any other Ontario premier in the 21st century. In Premier Doug Ford’s first throne […]
Thanks to Trudeau’s carbon tax, if you heat your home with furnace oil, propane, or natural gas, you will be paying a lot more just to stay warm this winter. Photo credit: Getty Images/iStock As Ontarians continue to struggle with soaring living costs, taxpayers better brace themselves for the bruising impact of the Trudeau […]
Based on the limited financial information the city has released, Toronto taxpayers are facing a raw deal. City bureaucrats estimate taxpayers will be on the hook for $290 million to bring five World Cup games to Toronto in 2026. Pictured is former mayor John Tory. Photo credit: The Canadian Press/Christopher Katsarov Toronto is out […]
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston. In the span of just two years, Houston managed to increase government spending by a stunning 19 per cent. Photo credit: Twitter/Tim Houston Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston is slamming his foot on the gas pedal and driving the province toward a fiscal cliff. For the sake of future […]
Ontario spends more now than it ever has and leads the pack per student among large provinces across the country. Plus, remember those supposed cuts you heard about? The opposite is true. Pictured is Minister of Education Stephen Lecce. Photo credit: Facebook/Stephen Lecce As Ontario families face the possibility of a looming teachers strike […]
Spending on government-run schools has reached record highs, yet performance has worsened. Photo credit: Pexels/RDNE Stock Project Here’s something Ontario’s education establishment doesn’t want you to hear: improving school choice would improve students’ outcomes and the province’s bottom line. Ontario students get to pick what post-secondary schools to apply for, tutors to hire and […]
More money – the proposed solution of choice for virtually all provincial governments past and present – simply won’t get the job done. Pictured is Ontario’s Minister of Health Sylvia Jones. Photo credit: Twitter/Sylvia Jones Here’s a truth most politicians will never admit: throwing money at Ontario’s health-care system won’t solve its fundamental problems. […]
If the Australian state of Victoria can withdraw from being the sole host of the 2026 Commonwealth Games, Toronto can pull out from hosting less than 10 per cent of the 2026 World Cup games. Pictured is an artist rendering of a FIFA-ready expanded BMO Field. Photo credit: BMO Field It’s time for the […]
Now that Stellantis and Volkswagen have negotiated a collective $31-billion handout from the feds and Ontario, no doubt other automakers will follow. Photo credit: Bloomberg/Emily Elconin Thirty-one billion dollars. That’s how much of your money Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier Doug Ford are handing over to two of the world’s largest and most […]
There’s plenty the newly elected mayor can do, from pulling the plug on the city’s costly privilege of hosting a handful of FIFA World Cup games in 2026 to opening up the tendering process. Photo credit: Twitter/Olivia Chow Olivia Chow won Toronto’s mayoral by-election promising to spend hundreds of millions of dollars the city […]
Current mayor Andrea Horwath has increased Hamilton’s city spending more in her first year as head of council than former mayor Fred Eisenberger (pictured here alongside Premier Doug Ford) did in his final four years in office. Photo credit: Premier of Ontario The budget Hamilton City Council passed this spring, under the leadership of […]
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston. From coast to coast, every other government outside of Nova Scotia has acknowledged it is wrong to punish taxpayers simply for receiving a cost-of-living pay raise. Photo credit: CBC/Robert Short Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston stands alone by deliberately profiting off of inflation. By failing to index income tax […]
Toronto has what’s called a closed tendering approach to awarding contracts for some of the city’s most expensive construction projects. That means that only certain construction companies affiliated with a handful of unions can bid to take on those jobs. Photo credit: Archinect Canada’s largest city has been overpaying on construction projects to the […]
Provincial government expected to bring in over $200 billion in tax revenue for 2023. According to the FAO, Ontario is positioned to run a surplus of $3 billion this year, $7.4 billion next year and $10 billion the year after that. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford Despite increasing government spending rapidly, the Ford government has […]
In total, data from the finance ministry shows Premier Doug Ford’s gas tax cut has left over a billion dollars in taxpayers’ wallets, and that tab will continue to grow for the next several months. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford Eight dollars every week. That’s how much Premier Doug Ford’s gas tax cuts have saved […]
Thanks in large part to inflation, provincial government set to collect nearly $25 billion more in tax revenue this year versus last. If he’s truly a man of and for the people, the premier would share some of that windfall with the wider population by lowering Ontario’s sales tax. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford It’s […]
Filling up the tank at the pumps and paying the home heating bill is set to get a whole lot more painful, with Trudeau’s second carbon tax ready to come into effect July 1. Photo credit: The Canadian Press/Ryan Remiorz We now know how much the Trudeau government’s carbon taxes will cost Ontario families […]
Taxpayer-funded quarterly allowances haven’t been awarded since last spring, when Premier Ford gave Ontario’s political parties three payments in advance, allowing them to spend the funds on attack ads during last year’s election campaign. Come June, the political welfare payments are set to resume. Photo credit: The Canadian Press/Chris Young Ontario’s political party slush […]
Toronto is the only municipality in Ontario that charges a land transfer tax. Mayoral candidate Anthony Furey (pictured, right) wants to change that by phasing out the additional tax in the years ahead. Photo credit: Twitter/Anthony Furey Here’s a novel idea: if you want to bring the price of housing down, try taxing less. […]
Rather than fix the present Science Centre, the Ford government is planning to build a brand-new facility on the grounds of the old Ontario Place. But building a new facility will take time and a lot of taxpayer dough. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford In trying to rationalize moving the Ontario Science Centre to the […]
In March, the governments of Canada and Ontario jointly announced what could turn out to be the largest corporate welfare handout in the country’s history. Experts say the governments collectively gave some $10 billion to Volkswagen to build its new electric car battery plant in St. Thomas. Photo credit: AP/Michael Sohn Here’s a sad […]
Ontario’s premier fought hard against Kathleen Wynne’s carbon tax scheme and won. Now, he continues to fight the forces that be in Ottawa. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford Ontario Premier Doug Ford has a penchant for recognizing a wolf in sheep’s clothing. When it comes to carbon taxes, Ford wasn’t fooled for a moment. Scrapping […]
The 2023 budget presented by the Newfoundlander and Labrador premier demonstrates clear fiscal prudence. In contrast, Trudeau’s budget spends $20 billion more this year than last. Pictured is Premier Andrew Furey. Photo credit: The Canadian Press/Andrew Vaughan The premier and prime minister might be young Liberal pals with a lot of star power, but […]
In 2021-22, Ontario finished the fiscal year with a $2.1 billion surplus – but instead of building on that surplus for budget 2023, Premier Ford (left) and Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy (right) tore it down. Photo credit: Twitter/Peter Bethlenfalvy Ontario Premier Doug Ford was like a rookie at a blackjack table during this budget […]
As Atlantic Canadians felt the crunch from inflation last year, the region’s premiers responded in one of two ways. Three premiers chose to deliver tax relief. Only Nova Scotia’s Tim Houston failed to offer any kind of meaningful relief to taxpayers. Photo credit: Communications Nova Scotia Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston was Atlantic Canada’s […]
Going forward, the P.E.I. premier can’t count on massive revenue windfalls. His election platform should show prudence and outline a plan to stay in the black. Photo credit: The Canadian Press/Brian McInnis Rather than present a budget, Prince Edward Island Premier Dennis King has plunged his province into an election. While the election call […]
With the Trudeau government’s online ‘censorship’ bill heading back to the House of Commons this week, now is the time for Liberal MPs to decide what they want their legacies to be. Photo credit: The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld Liberal backbenchers have a first-rate opportunity to prove that MPs are more than trained seals by […]
Instead of dreaming up new taxes to hammer Canadians, Trudeau could start looking at areas to save. Photo credit: Bloomberg/David Kawai If you hear the sound of water about to crash ashore, that’s the sound of the Trudeau government’s tidal wave of new taxes set to wash over taxpayers in this winter’s federal budget. […]
Former mayor of Toronto John Tory’s time in office was marked by a level of financial imprudence that rivals that of even Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Photo credit: CBC/Evan Mitsui It’s time to dispel a yearslong myth: former mayor John Tory was no friend to Toronto taxpayers. He shouldn’t let the door hit him […]
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston (left) and P.E.I. Premier Dennis King. Their respective provincial governments are stubbornly refusing to adjust their tax brackets to account for soaring inflation. Photo credit: Twitter and Facebook Two Atlantic Canadian governments are cashing in on inflation and it’s time for taxpayers to stand up and demand better. When […]
Although the premier has made a series of bad financial decisions of late, he has a fresh mandate and a new opportunity to return to his pro-taxpayer roots. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford Premier Doug Ford is facing a moment of truth in the next budget. After years of runaway spending, will he finally embrace […]
It’s time for the premier to make good on his 2018 promise to nix the per-vote subsidy. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s excuses for maintaining a taxpayer slush fund are wearing thin. A decade ago, former premier Kathleen Wynne thought it would be a bright idea to give Ontario’s political parties […]
While political leaders around the country used the pandemic as an excuse to increase spending across the board, New Brunswick’s Blaine Higgs took a different approach. Photo credit: The Canadian Press/Stephen MacGillivray If anyone is looking for an instructor to teach a masterclass on defending the public purse, New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs should […]
Premier Doug Ford. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford It’s time for Premier Doug Ford to be bold. The cost of living is soaring for Ontario families. To deliver relief to every Ontarian across the province, Ford should cut the provincial sales tax. Ford owes Ontarians relief. Four years ago, he promised to cut income taxes for the […]
After failing to receive Senate approval before the last federal election, Canada’s so-called ‘online censorship bill’ was reintroduced by Minister of Canadian Heritage Pablo Rodriguez (pictured) in February of this year. Photo credit: The Canadian Press/Justin Tang Prime Minister Justin Trudeau doesn’t care about Canadian content creators. When Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriquez first tabled […]
After a temporary six-month pause, the provincial gas excise tax is set to be reinstituted at the end of the year. Photo credit: Twitter/Doug Ford If Ontario Premier Doug Ford doesn’t want to be the grinch who stole Christmas, he’ll start working on a plan to make Ontario’s temporary gas tax cut permanent. Ontario […]
Bill C-11 would hand the CRTC, a government agency, the power to control what Canadians are exposed to online through filtering our news and streaming feeds. Photo credit: Twitter/Justin Trudeau Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is taking Canada on a headfirst dive toward government censorship, with the Senate the only obstacle standing between Canadians and […]
Photo credit: The Canadian Press/Chad Hipolito Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is eyeing a wealth tax to pay for his government’s spending spree. Heavily redacted documents obtained by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation show Trudeau asked for analysis of a $60-billion wealth tax. With indefinite deficits looming, it must be tempting to grab that cash. But a wealth […]
Photo credit: The Niagara Independent/Nicholas Tibollo The collective blood pressure of Ontario taxpayers surged over the weekend as gas prices hit record levels across the province. In large part, hardworking taxpayers can blame the federal government for soaring costs. For the first time ever, gas prices in Ontario crossed the $1.50 per litre threshold. […]
Bureaucrats are getting raises, while average Ontarians are undergoing endless pay cuts and closures. Photo credit: Associated Press/Wilfredo Lee Ontario has been experiencing a tale of two pandemics. One is a fairy tale for bureaucrats and the other is a grim story for the rest of us. Bureaucrats working for the province and its […]
Photo credit: Getty Images/Jose Luis Pelaez In case Premier Doug Ford is one of those last-minute holiday shoppers who doesn’t like the mall, Ontario taxpayers have some stocking stuffer ideas the Ontario government needs to deliver. The best gift ideas are presents that Ford should be very familiar with, since they were in his […]
