by CONNIE TABBERT
Editor
WHITEWATER REGION (Cobden) – Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembrke MP Cheryl Gallant was pleased to see a packed meeting for her town-hall presentation-like meeting on the tax changes proposed by the current Liberal government.
The proposed changes will affect farmers, small business, as well as a variety of professionals like engineers, doctors, dentists, building contractors, plumbers, electricians, to name a few trades, she said.
“What is being proposed by the Liberal party will change the ability of a family member to work on the farm,” she told the more than 220 people in attendance. “It will limit the farmer’s ability to save for his or her retirement. Just as troubling, the changes will make it more difficult for the farmer to pass the farm to the next generation.
“What Canadians are now witnessing is the death of the family farm if Trudeau and the Liberal party get their way.”
Opening the meeting, MP Gallant spoke about the proposed changes and how she views the reality of those changes.
Regarding income sprinkling, she explained that currently farms and local businesses are a family venture and that spouses, children, and siblings all pitch in and the business can compensate them. Under the proposed Liberal plan, the government will impose a ‘reasonable test’ on these family businesses and farms to determine if family members are earning their income, she said.
“Farms and local businesses are family ventures and everyone chips in,” MP Gallant said. “For the Liberals to categorize them as tax cheats, that’s insulting.”
Speaking about passive income, MP Gallant said currently local businesses can save money within their companies for unexpected emergencies, downturns and retirement. Under the proposed changes, the government will tax small business owners twice on their passive income: once inside the company and once when it’s paid out to the owner for a total tax rate that can reach as high as 73 percent.
And finally, currently under capital gains, local businesses that sell assets have the proceeds taxed at the capital gains rate instead of the higher dividend rate. However, under the proposed changes, the proceeds of an asset sale will be at the dividend rate of 45 percent instead of the lower capital gains tax rate, if the seller and buyer are non-arms length. Business-owners and farmers will not be able to use their life-time capital gains exemptions when selling to family.
“Therefore, a farmer selling a $500,000 farm would be $225,000 better off selling to a foreign company than to his son,” MP Gallant stated.
MP Gallant also spoke briefly about how doctors will be affected. Doctors in Ontario were told they had to incorporate, she said, adding, now they are being called tax cheats for incorporating. She noted in Renfrew County older doctors have been delaying retirement out of concern for their patients, but these tax changes will push doctors to stop practicing medicine now to avoid having their retirement savings taxed away.
“Renfrew County will be back in a healthcare crisis, as there are too few doctors as it is,” MP Gallant stated.
The evening also featured tax specialists Charles Rotenberg and Tom West. Their presentations included a question and answer session. As each individual person’s circumstance is different, taxpayers will be forced to spend thousands of dollars on lawyers and accountants just to protect what they have.
“One of the points raised was the sneaky way the changes were announced, in the middle of summer when taxpayers would be pre-occupied with work,” Mr. Rotenberg stated. “For those who could afford to do so, summer time is when Canadians take a much-needed break with their families.”
Never before have such sweeping tax changes been proposed with so little public consultation Mr. West said. Normally, changes such as these are announced in a federal budget, followed by an extensive consultation period.
MP Gallant believes the media was purposely distracted by the disgraceful $10.5 million pay-off which preceded the announcement that taxes would be spiking upward to pay for bad spending.
Mr. Rotenberg and Mr. West both stressed the importance of people hiring an accountant, even though it will be another expense.
For family members on a farm who are helping out, it’s important they begin keeping a log of their hours and what they are doing, Mr. Rotenberg said.
“The government is going to decide what is reasonable,” so you must be able to tell them what you are doing on the farm and when, he explained.
Mr. Rotenberg strongly believes the tax changes will be challenged in court, and the challenge will go as high as the Supreme Court.
Prior to the question and answer period, MP Gallant said she strongly believes the government “really wants to do away with the family farm.”
She encouraged people to sign the petition she had at the meeting, as well as take the petition with them to get others to sign it.
“For every 25 names on the petition, I can stand in the House of Commons and read out what it is the signatories want changed,” MP Gallant said. “The more people who sign it, the more time I have to stand up and talk.”
For those who wanted to speak out against the tax changes, she provided forms for them to fill out for her to take to the Liberal party. Ending the evening, MP Gallant stood in front of the crowd and stated, “The good news is, the Conservative party is committed to fighting this unfair attack on working Canadians, particularly the attack on people who grow our food, provide jobs and keep us healthy
“The selfie-obsessed snowflake Prime Minister will melt in the glare of public opinion. It is time to turn up the heat on him and his party.”
