Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Burnaby—Douglas.
I want to list a few things that are going to increase in price with this harmonized sales tax.
One area is gasoline prices. If we are paying $1 for gasoline, we are now going to be paying $1.08. Knowing how these oil companies operate, I would not be surprised to see the increase in gasoline prices go above the 8%. It could go as high as 10%, 12% or 15%, and they would just blame the government because that is how these companies operate.
Another area is utilities: heating, hydro and natural gas. These are essential for people in northern Ontario and northern B.C. In the economic recession that we are having now, this is certainly going to affect every citizen in northern Ontario.
Right now in northern Ontario, we have a company called Vale Inco where there is a strike. We have 3,200 people who are on strike. These people are having a hard time right now paying their bills, but with this harmonized sales tax, they will have to pay more for their heating, hydro and natural gas.
Other areas are Internet bills and prepared foods of $4 or more. There is a real kicker: prepared foods of $4 or more. That will exempt Timbits. I want to quote the senior vice-president of corporate affairs for Tim Hortons, Nick Javor, who said
The company is delighted the government recognizes consumers have become used to the PST exemption on low-cost meals. People are counting their nickels and dimes. Most people spend $2.75 to $3.25 at Tim Hortons...so the 8% that would have been there would have made a difference.
I would like to know, if I could ask him, what Mr. Javor thinks about the poor people who are paying extra for gasoline, something that is essential, and heating oil, something that is very essential in northern Ontario and northern British Columbia.
It is strange that he would make these comments about Timbits and Tim Hortons. I am really concerned about this.
Another thing that will be taxed is adult footwear under $30. The people who buy footwear under $30 are basically poor people, so now they are going to have to pay more. The poor people, people who do not have money are going to have to pay more for footwear.
Other things that will be taxed are veterinary care, personal services, professional services and mutual funds fees. A letter from one of my constituents was very upset about mutual funds. A lot of his clients have lost a lot of money in this recession with mutual funds and now they are going to have to pay 8% more for mutual fund fees.
Membership fees for a gym is an example where the government does not want Ontarians to be fit, so we are going to tax them. Real estate commissions, commercial property rentals, condo fees, landscaping and labour costs related to home renovations will also taxed. The Conservative government is presently giving a rebate for home renovations, so now we are going to take it back with the HST. A really good plan.
Additional items include: vitamins, admission to live theatres, taxi fares, conferences and seminars, dry cleaning, and the list goes on and on, motor vehicle services, ice rink rentals, hotels, overnight summer camps, and domestic air travel. As if domestic air travel were not expensive enough at it is right now, we are going to add another 8% to it. Shame.
Domestic rail travel, bus tickets, and Christmas trees, the government is the grinch that stole Christmas. It is going to tax Christmas trees. Electrical and plumbing services are services we are giving a rebate for home renovations and now we are going to take that back. The government should be ashamed of itself.
The last one I want to mention is funeral costs. We are even going to tax dead people.
There are many people right now going bankrupt in northern Ontario. They are going to have to pay all of these taxes, so I want to quote from an article that was in our local newspaper:
Imagine someone taking a close look at your pay-cheque, monthly bills and expenses and telling you that you need--make that must--learn to manage money better. You are also told that your credit rating is gone. Your bank is now going to pay closer attention to all activity on your account. And those credit cards in your wallet: hand them over. You've had to declare personal bankruptcy. You're flat broke and swimming in a sea of debt. All you have left in most cases is your job and the clothes on your back. In the case of a business bankruptcy, you don't even have that.
These people are going to have to pay more taxes, the HST, because of the Conservatives and the Liberals. Do not forget that the Liberals are heavily involved in this.
I want to quote from another article in our newspaper which is about jobs. We have lost 600 jobs recently in Sudbury and the Nickel Belt:
The number of people working dropped from 77.5% to 76.9%--a loss of some 600 jobs. That continues a string of monthly job losses, including 400 in October, 600 in September and 1,000 in August.
Economics Professor David Robinson, in his monthly labour market analysis posted on the Institute of Northern Ontario Research and Development website reported that “6,200 jobs have been lost in the city in the past 12 months, or about one job in 13. In addition to the loss of jobs in November, 1,300 fewer Greater Sudburians were working or looking for work”.
Now we are going to tax these people even more. They do not have a job or they are bankrupt and now we are going to tax them even more.
I am going to read names of some of the people in my riding who have written to me about this tax. I wanted to know what they thought about the tax. They oppose the 8% HST tax increase being brought in by the Conservative government, along with the federal Liberals and the provincial Liberals.
Marie-René Levesque from Sturgeon Falls wrote to me. Jean-Paul Arbour of Lavigne also wrote to me about this tax. Their comments are always the same. They hate this tax and cannot understand why it is being brought in.
Claudio and Lisa Lenti of Sudbury, Chantal and Russ Edmunds of Sturgeon Falls, Mr. and Mrs. Dan Lachapelle of Sturgeon Falls, Lionel Sarazin of Sturgeon Falls, all of these people are going to have to pay an extra 8% HST on items that they are going to purchase.
The list goes on: Mandy Beaulieu from Sturgeon Falls, Mary Jean Samson from Sturgeon Falls, Bill and Gilberte Major from Sturgeon, Linda Caskanette from Crystal Falls are all going to be paying more on their purchases in the near future.
Madeline Rancourt from Hanmer, Jacob Bailey from Sturgeon Falls, Ron Krajc from Crystal Falls who are all saying the same thing.
I see, Mr. Speaker, that you have indicated that I have one minute left, so I am going to stop reading names. I have a whole list of names.
What I want to do now is read a poem that was sent to me this weekend. It is called “Psalm 2009--First Book of Government”:
McGuinty is the shepherd I did not want
He leadeth me beside the still factories.
He restoreth my faith in the Conservative party.
He guideth me in the path of unemployment for his party's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the bread line,
I shall fear no hunger, for his bailouts are with me.
He has anointed my income with taxes...HST being the latest
My expenses runneth over.
Surely, poverty and hard living will follow me all the days of my life,
And I will live in a mortgaged home forever.
I am glad to be a Canadian
I am glad that I am free.
But I wish I was a dog...
And--
