NEWS RELEASE
December 10, 1996 For Immediate Release
BREITKREUZ INTRODUCES THE PEOPLE'S TAX FORM ACT
"Finally, a tax form that tells politicians how you want them to spend your tax dollars."
Ottawa - Today in the House of Commons, Garry Breitkreuz, MP for Yorkton-Melville introduced The People's Tax Form Act. Officially the Private Member's Bill is called, "An Act to allow taxpayers to inform government of their views on levels and priorities for the expenditure of tax revenues and to provide parliamentary review of the results."
"The purpose of the bill is to give all taxpayers an opportunity to tell the government exactly where they want their money to go. Tax relief will never happen unless taxpayers can tell government how they want and don't want their money spent. Politicians and bureaucrats forget that it's not their money they handle but the money given to them by the taxpayers of Canada. Frankly, Canadians have seen the waste and mismanagement and don't trust politicians with their hard-earned money."
"The vast majority of Canadians oppose grants and handouts to business, special interest groups, bilingualism, multiculturalism, affirmative action, the CBC, the National Film Board, etc, etc. But either the Liberals and the Tories don't listen, or they just don't care," commented Breitkreuz.
"If the government receives millions of People's Tax Forms filed with tax returns every year, it will be difficult, if not impossible, for government to ignore the collective will of the majority of taxpayers. Direct democracy and the power of populism can work if voters are given the right tools and if government politicians are prepared to share just a small piece of their power with the people," explained Breitkreuz.
"Even though the People's Tax Form is voluntary, I am convinced that millions of Canadians would use the form to send a real message to government about which programs they support and which ones they don't," predicted Breitkreuz. "My bill also allows for the tabulation, analysis and review of the results by Parliament in time for the budget review process every fall. The People's Tax Form Act would help get rid of billions of dollars of unwanted, ineffective government programs and other programs used purely for political reasons.
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See a copy of The People's Tax Form Act
For more information please contact:
The Office of Garry Breitkreuz, M.P.
Yorkton: (306) 782-3309
Ottawa: (613) 992-4394
RESULTS ON TEST OF "THE PEOPLE'S TAX FORM"
by Garry Breitkreuz, MP (Yorkton-Melville)
Breitkreuz tested "The People's Tax Form" in his own constituency. "I have over 500 People's Tax Forms returned to me from my own constituents and the response has been so positive, I wanted to see how other Canadians would react to it," said Breitkreuz.
GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS MOST STRONGLY OPPOSED BY MY CONSTITUENTS
GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS MOST STRONGLY SUPPORTED BY MY CONSTITUENTS
ADDITIONAL TALKING POINTS - THE PEOPLE'S TAX FORM ACT
by Garry Breitkreuz, MP (Yorkton-Melville)
1.This is what the People's Tax Form Act proposes:
Note: Some difference of opinion exists regarding the best design for the form itself. Consequently, my bill includes provisions for amending the form by Order in Council. I include this version in my bill because I tested it in my own constituency.
2.Canadians are tired of filling out tax forms that focus simply on the collection of their hard-earned money. They want a form that allows them to direct where their money will be spent. Why? Because it's their money. It doesn't belong to the politicians and bureaucrats. It's about time we changed the system and practised democracy. Unless we change the tax system we'll never bring our spending under control.
3.Special interest groups, big corporations and lobbyists have been able to hijack the agenda and persuade politicians to give them tax dollars and implement programs that most people do not feel are priorities. It's obvious people want politicians to cut grants and handouts to special interest groups and corporations and preserve funding for pensions, health care and law and order, but somehow the Liberal government doesn't seem to be getting the message. said Breitkreuz.
4.How many Canadians would be willing to walk into a department store at the end of every month, slap down a five hundred dollar cheque and let the clerk decide what to bring the customer for his or her money? People expect to have a real choice of what they get for their hard-earned wages when they go to the store, shouldn't they have choice of what they get from their government? I think it's time to change the system and bring back democracy to the way government spends your money.
5.Our tax system focuses only on collecting money from the people without allowing them a say in how it's spent. The current system rewards lobbyists, special interest groups and large corporations who make big donations to the Liberal Party, not the people who pay the bills. Why should people be forced to support government programs and activities they don't believe in? "The People's Tax Form" give Canadians a chance to make their priorities the government's priorities. I believe the role of government in a free and democratic society is to carry out the will of the people and my new tax form is the first step in that direction.
