How? Did the deficit impact the ability to create this rescue package?
The waldo proposes that yes, Canada could have been in better position to respond to this emergency:
for some time, the waldo has been HarperingOn about lost GST federal revenue: again, per the PBO, every percentage point of GST is worth about $7-Billion a year; accordingly, Harper Conservatives's 2-point GST cut in 2013 has cost a loss of, CONSERVATIVELY, $84 Billion to federal coffers!
in terms of Canada being in a better position to respond to this coming COVID-19 economic downturn, the waldo has been proven right. It sure would be nice to have that foregone $84 Billion back to add to the stimulus and recovery measures the government has needed to put in place because of COVID-19. We'd have more room to expand debt-to-gdp and keep it at a reasonable level.
always listen to the waldo
I won't defend the cut to the GST, which I always disagreed with. But there's an obvious disconnect here: you can't argue that annual budget deficits are irrelevant because the GDP to debt ratio remains strong while simultaneously arguing that we would be in a better position if we hadn't lost the revenue from the GST cuts.
-k
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