HALIFAX, Nova Scotia (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government announced plans Thursday to temporarily eliminate the federal sales tax on some items and send checks to millions of Canadians facing rising costs and now federal elections are looming.
The measures come as voters are dissatisfied with Trudeau amid the cost-of-living crisis and ahead of an election that could take place anytime between this fall and October next year.
“Our government can’t fix prices at the cash register, but we can put more money in people’s pockets,” Trudeau said at a news conference in Toronto.
Under the plan, Canadians who have worked and earned up to 150,000 Canadian dollars (US$107,440) by 2023 will receive a check for 250 Canadian dollars. Trudeau noted that even those making at the high end of that amount are struggling to make ends meet.
An estimated 18.7 million Canadians will receive the one-time check.
The federal goods and services tax credit would start on December 14 and end on February 15.
The government said the tax credit will apply to a number of items, including children’s clothing and shoes, toys, diapers, restaurant meals, beer and wine. It also applies to Christmas trees, a variety of snacks and drinks and video game consoles.
Trudeau has said he will lead his Liberal Party into the next election. No Canadian prime minister in more than a century has won four consecutive terms. The liberals must count on the support of at least one major party in parliament, as they do not have an absolute majority themselves.
Trudeau channeled his father’s star power in 2015 when he reaffirmed the country’s liberal identity after nearly a decade of conservative rule. But the son of the late Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau is now in trouble. Canadians are frustrated with the cost of living due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Liberals trail the opposition Conservatives by 39% to 26% in the latest Nanos poll. The survey of 1,047 respondents has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
