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Harper's corporate tax cuts disastrous for Canadians, says NAPE President

NAPE says federal revenue losses may reduce transfer payments and impact provincial public services such as health and education.

Carol Furlong, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Public and Private Employees (NAPE/NUPGE)St. John's (3 Feb. 2011) - The Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Public and Private Employees (NAPE/NUPGE) says corporate tax cuts planned by the Harper government could be disastrous for ordinary Canadians.

"Once taxes are cut for corporations the only option left for the federal government to deal with the growing deficit will be to cut transfer payments to the provinces," says NAPE president Carol Furlong.

"This will have a devastating impact on public services such as health and education. Currently 21.2% ($1.5 billion) of our province's total revenue comes from health and social transfers and cost shared programs."

Because the province is running its own deficit, any cuts in federal funding will likely be felt in reduced provincial services, Furlong notes.

"These tax cuts are not new. Since 2006 the federal government has created $60 billion in tax savings for Canadian corporations. Instead of reducing corporate taxes further we should be demanding more from such profitable entities as banks and oil companies. Corporations don’t need the phasing in of a further income tax cut to the tune of an additional $10.4 billion in 2010-2012," she argues.

"Oil companies make record profits while Canadian banks rake in billions in profits.... The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) recently reported that CEOs in Canada had made as much on the third day of the new year as the average worker will make all year," Furlong says.

"It is time that Canadians begin to have a more direct say in the political agenda. The federal opposition parties seem powerless to stop the attack on ordinary Canadians in favuor of the corporate CEOs and the companies they run. Working Canadians will ultimately pay the price for lowering taxes for corporations and CEOs. Our taxes will increase and our services will decrease to feed this corporate appetite of greed, the same greed that led to the most recent economic collapse."

NUPGE

The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE