March 31, 2000 Edmonton, Alberta
Alberta’s Provincial Treasurer Stockwell Day issued this statement today: Premier Ralph Klein has called for legislation that will ensure Albertans pay the lowest personal taxes in Canada. The province is already working on this legislation -- legislation that will keep taxes low and guarantee Alberta’s competitive advantage. The Alberta Liberal’s Bill 211 is also intended to ensure that Alberta remains competitive. However, the poorly designed Bill makes it very difficult to implement any tax cuts at all. Section (1(c)) states: Tax rates must contribute to an equitable allocation of benefits among Albertans that does not result in an unfair redistribution of the tax burden on low and middle income Albertans. While this rhetoric may sound good, it’s impractical, as all tax cuts shift the distribution of the tax burden. In fact this Liberal proposal would not allow us to remove the tax burden from 132,000 low-income earners as we already are doing. In effect, Bill 211 would tie the government’s hands, preventing Alberta from giving money back to its rightful owners. Alberta does not support any legislation that makes it harder for us to cut taxes. - 30 - For further information, please contact:
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| Shannon Larkins Director of Communications Alberta Treasury (780) 427-5364 |
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