267 replies to this topic

[spanky123]

This is a very good article that summarizes this government well.

http://www.macleans....ll-morneau/amp/

 

I would like to believe that Morneau has finally come to his senses but my sources in Ottawa keep saying that Trudeau has dug himself in on this one. 

 

Wouldn't it be something if they back off on the small business taxes yet leave in place the tax on employee discounts?!

[tjv]

I have no issue with your argument above. I agree it should be a level playing field. However, rjag said above. vacationing leaders are not a party based phenomenon The issue is where do you draw the line in regards to what is required security, and what is excessive?

I am not saying the security portion is a taxable benefit, that is simply required as part of his duties at Prime Minister.  It would be fair to say what is the value of a vacation to a private island in the Bahamas via private helicopter that the average Canadian would pay?  I think that is how any judge would see it

 

Mr Trudeau needs to lead by example

 

As for employee discounts I can simply see employers saying its not worth the paperwork hassle and stop discounts all together.  Whats next am I supposed to start tracking how much free coffee that each employee drinks in the lunch room?

[RFS]

The employee discounts thing is more bad news for beleaguered retail workers. Why would anyone think that's a good idea, politically? Let alone policy wise

[jonny]

As for employee discounts I can simply see employers saying its not worth the paperwork hassle and stop discounts all together.  Whats next am I supposed to start tracking how much free coffee that each employee drinks in the lunch room?

 

The real stupid thing about government decisions such as this as they show no regard to the technical complexities involved in tracking, managing and calculating this sort of data. A large organization such as Tim Hortons now needs to reconfigure their POS to capture and store taxable benefit data by employee and integrate POS taxable benefit data with their payroll system, including calculate and remit the correct taxes and displaying this data on pay stubs.

 

To make these sort of changes on the fly, is quite complicated and can be very expensive.

[RFS]

Or All the teenagers who work at McDonald's and get cheap food. Totally absurd

[jonny]

It's overboard, for sure. 

 

If your employer takes you out for a Christmas or year-end lunch, is that a taxable benefit?

[tjv]

What I was wondering is the wholesale discount over retail I get for my business now a taxable benefit?

 

Where does it stop?  Lets get rid of Trudeau now!

[spanky123]

What I was wondering is the wholesale discount over retail I get for my business now a taxable benefit?

 

Where does it stop?  Lets get rid of Trudeau now!

 

It is the discount over the regular retail price. There seems to be a bit of a loophole though in that the retail price is the lowest price that the product was sold at. I wonder if you could have a sale between 11:59PM and 12:00AM one day a year where everything was available to the public for the employee discounted price!

[RFS]

It is the discount over the regular retail price. There seems to be a bit of a loophole though in that the retail price is the lowest price that the product was sold at. I wonder if you could have a sale between 11:59PM and 12:00AM one day a year where everything was available to the public for the employee discounted price!

Not realistic. Most retailers do 30 or 60 or even 90 day price protection meaning they would have to give anyone who had bought before that sale the discounted price. It's just bad all around

[Matt R.]

It's overboard, for sure. 
 
If your employer takes you out for a Christmas or year-end lunch, is that a taxable benefit?

My understanding is that when this lunch goes over $100 per head then it becomes a taxable benefit.

Most smaller organizations simply won't bother with this. Lots of restaurants give free drinks and meals to staff, it simply won't be tracked on paper.

Matt.

[Mattjvd]

My understanding is that when this lunch goes over $100 per head then it becomes a taxable benefit.

Most smaller organizations simply won't bother with this. Lots of restaurants give free drinks and meals to staff, it simply won't be tracked on paper.

Matt.

Per T4130, Chapter 3; Meals are taxable benefits unless: the employee is charged a realsonable amount for the meal (cost to employer), or the employee is working overtime directly after or before their regularly scheduled shift and the overtime is not more frequent than twice per week. (Meals during work related travel are non-taxable too of course, but that is another section)

Edited by Mattjvd, 10 October 2017 - 12:23 PM.

[jonny]

The easy get around is to call everything a "working lunch". 

[Awaiting Juno]

I don't get it.  I just don't get it.  

The small business changes didn't make sense, and these make even less sense.

Really.  The man needs to spend less time shopping for socks and more time actually thinking about the policy changes he is making.

There's fairness, and then there's this - what a mess.  

Almost makes me think he wasn't ever really wanting to be prime minister, that he just wanted to be the opposition and even then would prefer to lead some third party with less than a couple dozen seats in the house.

[Jackerbie]

Is an all expenses paid trip to the Aga Khan's private island a taxable benefit? Asking for a friend.

[spanky123]

I don't get it.  I just don't get it.  

The small business changes didn't make sense, and these make even less sense.

Really.  The man needs to spend less time shopping for socks and more time actually thinking about the policy changes he is making.

There's fairness, and then there's this - what a mess.  

Almost makes me think he wasn't ever really wanting to be prime minister, that he just wanted to be the opposition and even then would prefer to lead some third party with less than a couple dozen seats in the house.

 

He wants to be PM and wants a legacy to match what he perceives is that of his dad.

 

The problem is that we haven't even started any meaningful infrastructure spending and are enjoying the strongest economy in a decade and the Libs are still running a $30B deficit! Add in the rumoured tens of billions they are about to announce in affordable housing and the only way he can finance this charade is by trying to tax everything that moves.

[jonny]

So basically those "Just Not Ready" ads from 2015 were spot on. Good thing we said “Stop Harper”.

 

I believe we elected 136 rookie liberal MPs in 2015. 136 out of 184 Liberal MPs are first time MPs. Over 70% of Liberal MPs are first timers! I’m sure for many of these MPs, this is there first time in elected office. On top of that, many have short resumes in general due to their ages. This is not only Morneau’s first time in a federal cabinet, but also his first time in public office. Appointing a rookie MP to be the bloody Finance Minister is looking to be a bad choice.

 

To me, Trudeau is a lot like Lisa Helps in that they are both elected officials with very little real world experience. A lot of Trudeau’s ideas maybe sounded good in the classroom, but the impacts are very real. We all want “fairness” and to “support the middle class”, but let’s stop beating around the bush – there is very little that is fair about the income and excise tax acts.

 

Combine a lack of experience, bad policy and horrible execution with a massive dose of moral superiority and apparently you get this. That Trudeau and Morneau’s massive personal fortunes will apparently be untouched by these latest announced changes just reeks of political rot. Political rot in a 2 year old government…yeesh.

 

When does Trudeau discard Morneau’s smouldering corpse in the same pile as Maryam Monsef? Would you take the over or under on 6 months?

[Mike K.]

Wow. +1.

[tjv]

[LJ]

  

Almost makes me think he wasn't ever really wanting to be prime minister, that he just wanted to be the opposition and even then would prefer to lead some third party with less than a couple dozen seats in the house.

I am pretty sure his dream will come true in 2019.

[North Shore]

This is not only Morneau’s first time in a federal cabinet, but also his first time in public office. Appointing a rookie MP to be the bloody Finance Minister is looking to be a bad choice.

 

To me, Trudeau is a lot like Lisa Helps in that they are both elected officials with very little real world experience. A lot of Trudeau’s ideas maybe sounded good in the classroom, but the impacts are very real. We all want “fairness” and to “support the middle class”, but let’s stop beating around the bush – there is very little that is fair about the income and excise tax acts.

 

Combine a lack of experience, bad policy and horrible execution with a massive dose of moral superiority and apparently you get this. That Trudeau and Morneau’s massive personal fortunes will apparently be untouched by these latest announced changes just reeks of political rot. Political rot in a 2 year old government…yeesh.

 

When does Trudeau discard Morneau’s smouldering corpse in the same pile as Maryam Monsef? Would you take the over or under on 6 months?

 

Thing is, Bill Morneau is a pretty experienced businessman, with an MSc in economics - he's at least as well qualified as his predecessor, Joe Oliver, and beats Jim Flaherty and Ralph Goodale, quite handily.

I can't figure out why he's being steamrolled by the PM on this?