Canada's NDP

NDP

February 23rd, 2023

Billions in subsidies for corporations with tax debt shows how government is stacking the deck against working people

The NDP’s Tax Fairness critic Niki Ashton (Churchill—Keewatinook Aski) released the following statement on reports that the federal government paid $37.7 billion in pandemic wage subsidies to businesses with tax debts, and even gave $1 billion in CEWS payments to insolvent companies, and won’t be seeking repayment:

“The Trudeau Liberals are again in hot water for subsidizing ultra-wealthy tax cheats. What’s even more worrying, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) says that cracking down on wealthy corporations isn't ‘worth the effort.’ Meanwhile, they’re going after Canadians that applied for COVID-era benefits like CERB in good faith to make ends meet. This double standard shows that, once again, the Liberals’ priorities are with the billionaire class at the expense of working people and those on fixed incomes. New Democrats will continue to fight to ensure the ultra-rich pay what they owe to fund the services Canadians rely on. It’s time to stop stacking the deck in favour of the ultra-wealthy.”