The straight facts on Ottawa’s tax reform, Olive, Oct. 7

David Olive’s article on the federal government’s income tax proposals is factual and honest. It is a gutsy clarion call for a more just taxation system in Canada. My hope is that ordinary Canadians will contact their MP and voice their support of Bill Morneau’s proposals. Otherwise, as Olive wrote: “bad things happen when good people do nothing,” and the privileged taxpayers will win again!

Kassim Ebrahim, Thornhill

As the owner of a small business for 10 years in Toronto, I was saddened to read this anti-doctor and anti-small business article. Actually, Canadians trust their doctors more than they trust any other professional.

Those who enjoy sick benefits, paid vacation, paid statutory holidays, health benefits, disability benefits, maternity leave and a retirement package or a pension plan cannot feel the pain of doctors and small business owners who do not have such benefits.

According to the government of Canada’s Key Small Business Statistics — June 2016 edition, “As of 2015, small businesses employed over 8.2 million individuals in Canada, or 70.5 per cent of the total private labour force.”

Our flawed electoral system allowed a Liberal majority government. The majority of Canadians voted against the Liberals. Therefore, Trudeau has no mandate to kill our small businesses, jobs and economy.

Jeffrey Ram, Toronto

Almost without exception, tax and financial experts have expressed concern and disbelief with these proposals, particularly regarding passive income. But as the former owner of a Canadian controlled private corporation (CCPC) for 33 years, I know of the importance and necessity of retained earnings in a corporation — call them profits or retained earnings or as the government likes to call them, passive income.

Passive they are not. If you are fortunate enough to be profitable, the corporation needs all of these funds in reserve and in use in order to survive, borrow and grow. Smart business owners use their profits to hire more employees, buy machinery and equipment, expand product lines, enter new markets and build new facilities to accommodate growth and much more. That is how it works. Some businesses share profits with their employees through bonuses and profit sharing as we did. Annually, we shared 12.5 per cent of our pre-tax profits with all of our employees.

What a novel idea — sprinkling our success with all! All employees benefitted. Our relations with them strengthened. They were more productive. And the government got their share. Everyone won!

Why is it that we have a prime minister, finance minister and many in the finance department who have not worked a day in a small business, wanting to increase the tax burden on owners of CCPCs? It won’t work — don’t do it!

Bob Deans, Mono, Ont.