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Something about rich people sticks in the craw of Justin Trudeau

Morneau is now trying to push through a tax change that he and the prime minister maintain is all about fairness. It would alter provisions for certain categories of entrepreneurs who are able to reduce their tax outlay by incorporating themselves. There’s no need to repeat the details, which have been extensively reported. Though Morneau did his best to minimize the fuss by unveiling the changes in mid-July, opposition has mushroomed nonetheless and Morneau and his boss are now running into some heavy water. Morneau has been forced to reassure colleagues rattled by a deluge of complaints. The issue is expected to be a major topic at a Liberal retreat this week.

Morneau insists he’s just trying to produce a “level playing field” and waylay a few “tax cheats.” Rich people, it appears, have been using “fancy accounting schemes” to minimize the amount they need to pay. Trudeau says he will “make no apologies” for his commitment to “fairness.”

The trouble with the government position is that it doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. It may be that some people are exploiting tax laws in a way that wasn’t intended, but if it’s legal they’re hardly “cheats.” If it’s illegal they should be charged. If there are loopholes in the current law, Ottawa should fill them. Instead, far from balancing any fields, Trudeau and his minister seem more interested in stoking a divisive campaign built on envy and resentment.

If there are loopholes in the current law, Ottawa should fill them

For one thing, the “rich” they’re targeting aren’t very rich. The Toronto Star notes self-righteously that 60 per cent of the small-business tax break benefit is enjoyed by those who earn more than $150,000 per year. That income is certainly healthy, but hardly Rockefellerian. In Ontario it’s the sort of money earned by cops on overtime, hydro workers, Toronto Star pundits, CBC personalities, teachers with two incomes and members of Parliament. I’m willing to bet Margaret Atwood—last seen campaigning to keep condos out of her luxury downtown neighbourhood—breaches that income barrier. I’m betting she doesn’t sit at the breakfast table, pencil in hand, doing her own taxes. Does that make her a “tax cheat” using “fancy accounting schemes” that utilize perfectly legitimate tax laws passed by Canada’s government?