Ontario Tax break on fast food coming to an End

[nicetommy2002]

I wonder what McGuinty will find next to tax.


CBC News Toronto — Ontario's next budget will add sales tax to restaurant meals that cost less than $4, sparking criticism that the new charge amounts to yet another tax on the poor.

Meals under $4 are currently exempt from the eight-per-cent provincial tax.

The cash-strapped Ontario government estimates that ending the exemption could send an extra $200 million to Queen's Park every year.

But the head of a Toronto food bank said the increase will have a large impact on rooming house residents who don't have their own kitchens.

"Poor people already have enough on their plate without adding another thing," Sue Cox told the Toronto Star. "What might seem like a few cents to [Premier Dalton McGuinty] is significant to people who count every penny."

The Ontario Restaurant Hotel and Motel Association also objects to the tax hike.

It estimates that ending the exemption could cost the industry more than $200 million, and will lead to job cuts in the restaurant industry.

The federal Goods and Services Tax already adds seven per cent to restaurant meals, regardless of their price.

The McGuinty government is expected to deliver a tough budget this spring as it grapples with a deficit projected at $5.6 billion.

 

[fiendishlibrarian]

I don't mind this at all. If it discourages people from eating less of that fast food, Tim Hortons garbage, all the better. Maybe we'll see fewer of those damn cups all over the place.

 

[billy corgan19982]

I don't mind this at all. If it discourages people from eating less of that fast food, Tim Hortons garbage, all the better. Maybe we'll see fewer of those damn cups all over the place.

I doubt a few extra cents in tax will change people eating habits.

 

[cacruden]

"I don't mind this at all. If it discourages people from eating less of that fast food, Tim Hortons garbage, all the better. Maybe we'll see fewer of those damn cups all over the place."

Dam straight, and if it stops "poor" people from eating.... "fries and a diet coke" and now they just have "diet coke".... o well, dead people don't complain :rollin

 

[sdoody]

I think the argument against this is funny...'this'll obviously screw over poor people because poor people eat exclusively at McDonalds or Burger King'. If you buy ingredients and actually - gasp! - make food yourself at home, it'll be a hell of a lot cheaper than fast food, and a lot healthier. Perhaps people don't have time to make food at home, but that doesn't mean McDonalds is the only option.

 

[cacruden]

>I think the argument against this is funny...'this'll obviously
>screw over poor people because poor people eat exclusively
>at McDonalds or Burger King'. If you buy ingredients and
>actually - gasp! - make food yourself at home, it'll be a hell
>of a lot cheaper than fast food, and a lot healthier. Perhaps
>people don't have time to make food at home, but that
>doesn't mean McDonalds is the only option.

Funny in some ways, but hey I cook for myself only... and it is typically not cheaper than McDonalds (just don't like McDonalds) -- ingredients (fresh) tend to go bad before I use all of it (esp. if you want variety).

It is a tax hike....

It applies to the lowest end of the price scale (not the "large size" meals)

Is the tax break going to be eliminated completely or just the SIN tax side -- i.e. Chinese food (real chinese) 3.99 -- is it going to be taxed as well or just burgers and fries? Don't know I have not read enough

The tax break has been "eaten away" by inflation anyways (it was not inflation adjusted -- so it changed from a lunch tax break to a mcmeal tax break).

So, to find out who the tax hike affects -- all you have to see is who is using it right now (not me).

If the "Conservatives" dared to raise taxes on things that only really affected the working poor..... there would be much more outrage...

 

[nicetommy2002]

The majority of street people don't have access to kitchens, where they could theoretically whip up a meal.

The 30 extra cents that this will cost them per $4 meal, adds up in the long run. Even at 1 meal per day, it adds up to over $100 in extra expenses each year.

This is an unnecessary tax grab. It's going to net the Libs $200 million in extra revenue. Big deal. McGuinty will keep blaming everything he does on the deficit until the day the Liberals are defeated in the next election. Maybe Hampton will have a better chance next time. Everything he predicted about the Liberals came true. Most everything the Liberals predicted about what they would do if elected, didn't come true.

 

[cacruden]

>The majority of street people don't have access to kitchens,
>where they could theoretically whip up a meal.

Very good point.

 

[sdoody]

Cooking for yourself certain CAN cost more, but if I was trying to economize I probably wouldn't buy expensive ingredients, and I wouldn't let food go bad...I would also sacrifice variety for cheaper meals.

But...this is definitely a tax hike. They're proposing removing the exemption across the board. If McGuinty needs money, I think he should just suck it up and raise income taxes, instead of pretending to honour his promise of no tax hikes by raising taxes in tricky ways.

"It's not a tax hike, we're just removing an exemption! And we're actually doing it to save you from all the evil fatty food, even though this will hit low-cost healthy food just as hard...":no:

 

[afransen TO]

Buy a package of spaghetti, tomato sauce, perhaps a few vegetables, perhaps even some ground beef. You can feed 4 to 8 people for around $4. Mcdonalds is a luxury for the truly poor.

Perhaps a better thing might be to have community kitchens which operate as coops where people can receive meals for free or nearly free in exchange for helping prepare a meal or two per week. Food banks and other charities could help provide the food. This way healthy, nutritious can be provided to the truly poor at a fraction of the cost of what is essentially expensive fast food.

 

[cacruden]

Actually there was a restaurant like that in Montreal (about the only place you could get a meal for 2$ or so).... but the landlord raised the rents and got new tenants -- that restaurant has not found a new home (so all there stuff went into storage).

 

[afransen TO]

I wouldn't be opposed to the government supporting an organization such as that. That is an invaluable service for the poor without the ability or knowledge to cook for themselves.

I don't know how you'd feel about the government subsidizing such an organization, but I feel it would have high social utility for a small investment.

 

[cacruden]

>I wouldn't be opposed to the government supporting an
>organization such as that. That is an invaluable service for
>the poor without the ability or knowledge to cook for
>themselves.

>I don't know how you'd feel about the government
>subsidizing such an organization, but I feel it would have high
>social utility for a small investment.

I am not opposed to subsidies to "community driven organizations" (I just do not want another government agency). Most of these people on the street fall into several general categories:
- A lot of people that we would have previously locked in mental institutions (30+ years ago) -- but cannot anymore if they are not deemed a danger to themselves or to others (and do not consent)
- Runaways

 

[afransen TO]

Of course there are all sorts on the streets, but this doesn't mean that they shouldn't have access to reasonably priced food.

It is unfortunate that many people with various mental illnesses go untreated and are allowed to rot on the street. It's a sticky issue, though, espcially if they do not consent to being helped.

There are other government agencies that I've heard of, including one in Toronto that takes individuals and sets them up in decent housing, helps them create a resume and get a job. For many people on the street, it is nearly impossible to get a job. Who would hire someone who looks like a bum? Unfortunately, this agency is extremely starved of funding for some inane reason. I don't understand why we waste money on advertising government (and the political left and right are both guilty of this) while leaving people to rot on the streets.

 

[GeekyBoyTO]

Last time I checked, a combo is already way above $4/person. Not exactly "cheap".

The thing is - why should there be a sales tax break in the first place.

GB