The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Trevor Miller While it was an unpopular move by the NDP government, things like hospital entrances and roads from Bakers into town don't build themselves for free. If we want these large infrastructure projects and others like them, the money has to come from somewhere. Mr. Pettersen's support for the increase probably won't win him a lot of votes, but it was a responsible step taken to pay for things as they come rather than taking on large additional debts and their accompanying interest charges. In terms of popular support, it may have been the wrong thing to do, but in practical terms, it will prove to be the right move in the long run. Ken Mansell All of the NDP MLAs are staying inside the box on this one. The government does not have much public support on this rather questionable introduction of a PST hike without a province-wide vote. A one-point increase is not a lot, but our total GST and PST is now 13 per cent. Saskatchewan is 10 per cent, Alberta is five per cent. Our retail sales have suffered. An east-side Bipole III route could save about $1 billion over the planned west-side route, claim the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. That's a lot of revenue. Taxes are never lowered. The income tax was a temporary measure to help pay for WWI, which ended 95 years ago. Denny Hyndman A hike in PST shouldn't have passed without a province-wide vote and that error is shouldered on all leadership, not our MLA personally. It's important to have a clear picture of how much funding is generated by the increase, how much is spent and where. It's irresponsible to have our law requiring a province-wide vote for a PST increase abolished without review. This system makes me feel uninformed because all levels of government unfold new game plans and generally politics get me cheesed off. I'm thankful for Mr. Pettersen for his commitment to our safety by getting our highways fixed up, but no, I do not support the hike in PST.
