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Canada’s tax bills may have eased somewhat in the past decade, but a Calgary author says Canadians are still paying too much to the government — and getting too little of value in return.

In the mostly revised second edition of Tax Me I’m Canadian! Your Money and How Politicians Spend It, Mark Milke writes Canada has moved from a “lavish welfare state” to an “entitlement state” whose citizens remain largely unaware of how their social programs are paid for.

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“The entitlement state now means that people think businesses should be subsidized when they’re going under, such as Chrysler and GM. It means that despite the fact that we’re pouring a lot of money into aboriginal affairs, people think the remedy for the poor social indicators is even more money in even more remote locations,” he said.

People think the remedy for the poor social indicators is even more money in even more remote locations

Although the tax burden has decreased from the late ‘90s, Mr. Milke said Canadians are still paying too much compared to other OECD states. The country is more heavily taxed now than it was during Pierre Trudeau’s era.