Quote:
Originally Posted by Rathji
Wouldn't rich people tend to buy more things that get taxed than poor people?
Of course, I am running on the assumption that any PST would mirror the GST in what it was was applied to. No idea if that would be the case for sure though.
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If you were to set up a sales tax and repeal the income tax on a revenue neutral basis then that is much more efficient. It removes a disincentive to working, promotes saving and investing, and the people who spend the most - generally the most wealthy - end up paying the most in taxes.
So in theory it is great but in practice it can have its own set of issue; things like underground economies, cross-border and online purchases. However those all issues exist with GST and other provincial systems anyways.
Value added taxes wouldn't feel like near as much of a burden if they were included in the prices shown. I think the ongoing aggravation of needing to add the extra 5% in your head to know what the bottom line price is going to be is a huge issue. But "burying" the tax like that brings calls that it is hidden. But all cash registers are computerized now, just have the register calculate how much of the total was tax and show that breakout on the receipt.