Here's my question, though, just to play devil's advocate.
If economists were near-unanimously against Harper's GST reduction plan, were they also consistently in favour of a GST increase while the Liberals were in power? If they were, why didn't we hear about that? If not, is there a formula or algorithm that makes 7% the "ideal GST rate" for some reason? Why not raise GST to 10% or 15%? That would benefit the nation's bottom line.
My point is, tax revenue needs to be collected one way or another. In the end, how that's done, while important (for fairness, efficiency, sustainability, etc), is not what matters most. IMO, if the government can balance its budget while working positively for the majority of its citizens, it should be deemed successful within that sector (financials).
Personally, I find the 5% GST rate to be beneficial. I'm relatively lazy, and it makes everyday cost calculations much simpler for me. I imagine it would likewise make retail business owners' lives somewhat easier, too.
Then again, I'm also not the type to complain if the GST was raised to 10% (as long as some other tax(es) were lowered slightly as an offset), because that would make my life easier yet.
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