By Fraser Institute ——Bio and Archives--July 5, 2023
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TORONTO—If the Ford government had maintained the spending levels of the previous Wynne government, there would have been $9.5 billion available this year for tax relief and balancing the budget, finds a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank.
“On the campaign trail in 2018, now-Premier Ford was critical of the spending of its predecessor. But since coming to office, his government actually increased spending even more, at the expense of keeping promises to lower taxes, balance the budget and reduce debt,” said Ben Eisen, a senior fellow with the Fraser Institute and co-author of No Sign of Significant Debt Reduction or Tax Relief in Ford’s Spring 2023 Budget—It’s All Spend, Spend, Spend!
The study analyzes the Ontario government’s recently tabled 2023/23 budget, and finds that per-person spending for the current fiscal year will be $12,405. By comparison, over the course of the Wynne government’s term in office, per person spending (inflation adjusted) averaged $11,784.
If the current government had maintained the average spending levels of its predecessor, spending would be $9.5 billion less this year.
To illustrate the scale of the tax relief that the government could have pursued if it had just held to Wynne-era spending levels, personal income taxes could have been reduced by $888 per tax filer this year.
Alternatively, the HST could be reduced by two percentage points to 11 per cent—a cost of $8.2 billion—while also eliminating the province’s projected $1.3 billion deficit this year.
“The Ford government once talked about the need to rein in spending, balance the budget and provide tax relief, which it could have done in its recent budget,” Eisen said.
“Instead, it has continued to choose higher spending, which prevents needed tax relief, balancing the province’s budget and beginning to pay down debt.”
Media Contact:
Ben Eisen, Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute
To arrange media interviews or for more information, please contact:Mark Hasiuk, Fraser Institutemark.hasiuk@fraserinstitute.org
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The Fraser Institute is an independent Canadian public policy research and educational organization with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal and ties to a global network of 86 think-tanks. Its mission is to measure, study, and communicate the impact of competitive markets and government intervention on the welfare of individuals. To protect the Institute’s independence, it does not accept grants from governments or contracts for research. Visit fraserinstitute.org.
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