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I don’t know if anyone was surprised at the Conservatives’ rapid adoption and implementation of the NDP proposal to remove the GST from tampons; I certainly wasn’t. When it comes to tax policy, both the NDP and the Conservatives parties are essentially populist — and populism is hardly a force for efficient tax policy.

The populist approach to taxation can be expressed in different ways. The Conservative version is “We will reduce the taxes you pay, without reducing the public services you receive.” For the New Democrats, it’s “We will increase the public services you receive, without increasing the taxes you pay.” These may sound like opposing statements, but they‘re promising the same thing: a free lunch, paid for by, well, you’re not really supposed ask that. Who asks questions when there’s a free lunch to be had? Certainly not populists.

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But of course, there is no free lunch. All taxes induce some sort of economic cost, some more than others, and the goal of an efficient tax mix is to produce the most revenues at the least economic cost. By unhappy chance, this goal is almost entirely at odds with the populist tax agenda.