Trudeau government announces GST holiday planned before Christmas

The Liberal government and the New Democratic Party (NDP) have agreed to adopt a two-month GST holiday on certain items before the holiday season, - has learned. The measure, which will be announced Thursday, is part of a billion-dollar plan to provide relief to families who have been hit by rising prices. Ottawa also plans to send checks to certain Canadians in the spring.

According to our information, Ottawa will announce a leave of TPS temporary which should come into force before Christmas. A long list of items is targeted, including certain grocery products on which the federal tax applies, such as beer, wine and hot prepared meals, for example.

Ottawa will also suspend the TPS on diapers, children’s clothing and shoes, children’s car seats and toys, in particular.

Sources from - and CBC also confirmed that the government intends, in the spring, to send individual checks to Canadians whose income falls within a certain range.

These two measures, the cost of which is expected to amount to several billions, will be enshrined in the same bill as the NPD intends to support the Commons, said a source familiar with the discussions.

Wednesday evening, the head of NPD indicated that he would support the government’s proposal regarding the TPS.

The NPD will vote in favor of this measure because workers desperately need a boost, and we are proud to have once again met their expectations.

Motions should accompany the bill to have it adopted expeditiously and to put a pause, at least temporarily, on the Conservatives’ delaying tactics that have been paralyzing the Commons for weeks.

It is impossible to know at this time whether these measures will be part of the fall economic statement that the Liberal government is working on or whether they will be adopted and voted on separately.

A buoy for the liberals?

This one-off agreement between the two political parties does not mean that the NPD will support the Liberals’ fall economic statement at all costs. According to our information, the New Democrats consider this to be a step in the right direction, but they have other demands on the table.

If the economic statement contains new spending, it must automatically be subject to a vote of confidence in the Commons, which has the potential to bring down the minority government. The Liberals must therefore obtain the support of at least one other political party.

With this major announcement, Justin Trudeau hopes to refocus his priorities on the cost of living and move the polls which still place his party around twenty points behind Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives.

Justin Trudeau is struggling to get back on track, while he is bothered by problems in Parliament. On Wednesday, he removed Randy Boissonnault from his Council of Ministers, due to controversy surrounding his alleged indigenous identity.

The commitments of the NPD

Last week, the NPD promised to go even further to improve the purchasing power of Canadians, if elected. Jagmeet Singh would eliminate the TPS permanently on essential products such as meals and snacks purchased at the grocery store, internet and cell phone bills, diapers and children’s clothing, as well as on residential heating.

This measure would deprive the government of $5 billion in tax revenue each year, estimates the NPDand would be offset by revenue from a tax on the excessive profits of big businesses.

The NPD will support the temporary measure proposed by the Liberals, even if it is considered insufficient. The New Democratic leader promises to campaign to definitively eliminate the TPS on essential products and monthly bills, as we have already promisedhe concluded.