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There may be manifold reasons to dislike Premier Doug Ford right now, but there is at least one good thing he’s done for the people of Ontario in recent days: promised to ease residents’ holiday expenditures by temporarily cutting provincial sales taxes on select goods and services.
Following the federal government’s announcement of a two-month GST relief initiative last week, Ford and his team have revealed that they are moving to match Ottawa’s efforts on a provincial level.
The decision spawned from a larger conversation with the feds “about how we can continue to work together to advance provincial priorities,” Ford wrote on X Wednesday, and should translate to close to a collective $1 billion financial break for families in the province.
The savings will apply to the province’s portion of HST on the purchase of items not already covered by provincial rebates between December 14 and February 15, if Ontario is indeed implementing the measure at the same time as the federal cuts.
It’s been a busy day getting it done here in Ontario. Check out what we did today, Wednesday, November 27:
✅ Canada’s premiers met with the Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to state the need for federal action to secure the border to avoid tariffs from the incoming president and…
— Doug Ford (@fordnation) November 27, 2024
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau explained last Thursday that “Canadians have been through a lot” in the present economy and cost of living crisis, and are thus really feeling the crunch of end-of-year spending.
“As the holidays approach, families, especially parents are particularly worried. Canadians have been through a lot,” he said during a press conference in Sharon, Ontario.
“We’ve been able to get through the past couple of years, everyone had to tighten their belts a little bit, and now we’re going to be able to give a tax break for all Canadians.”
The GST reprieve applies to groceries and food (including restaurant meals and alcoholic beverages aside from spirits), children’s clothing and toys, diapers, car seats, Christmas trees, books and more. In Ontario, basic groceries are among the items that are already HST exempt, while things like children’s clothing are rebated the provincial tax at the point of sale.
A full list of all the items included in Canada’s holiday GST cut https://t.co/ywmLcs4XMB
— blogTO (@blogTO) November 24, 2024
The Province has yet to release further details about their version of the program, but a few independent businesses are already wary of any tax cuts in the weeks to come, with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) saying Thursday that “small firms have major concerns and questions over the timing, process and administrative costs associated with the change.”
