LTE: Don't let Conservatives off hook

First Published - Sept 08, 09

http://www.bclocalnews.com/surrey_area/langleytimes/opinion/letters/5772...

Editor: The HST is as much (federal Finance Minister) Jim Flaherty and the federal Conservatives’ fault as it is the BC Liberals.

Instead of allowing B.C. to keep its current exemptions, the Conservative government forced the province to apply the HST to 95 per cent of the items that currently have GST applied.

Under the terms of the agreement, a future B.C. government cannot issue any point of sale exemptions without repaying the $1.6 billion transfer.

Whether one agrees with a combined tax or not, it should be unconstitutional for a federal government to interfere with provincial tax exemptions.

Mark Warawa and the other Conservative MPs from B.C. have remained silent on the HST. If there is a fall election, I hope voters remember this.

Dan Grice,

Langley