We are rich Canadians and we support higher capital gains taxes

Posted on April 23, 2024 in Governance Policy Context

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TheStar.com – Opinion/Contributors
April 22, 2024.   By Emma Davis and Jonathan McPhedran Waitzer, Contributors

And we’re not the only ones who believe taxing the rich is good for Canada. Polls show that the vast majority of Canadians across the political spectrum support taxes on wealth.

Ottawa wants to raise taxes for Canada’s ultra-rich. Rich people like us want that, too.

Last week, Chrystia Freeland unveiled the 2024 federal budget, which includes increases to the capital gains tax inclusion rate that will impact an estimated 0.1 per cent of Canadians — those who make more than $250,000 in one year from the sale of an asset (other than a principal residence).

Right now, Canadians fortunate enough to be enjoying such a capital gain only pay tax on half of those gains, whereas wages — how most people make their money — are 100 per cent included.

As well as stock sales, another scenario that could trigger this rate would be the sale of a second home — which seems only fair in a housing crisis when many people can’t afford rent or a first home.

The proposed increased rate will also affect trusts, which are a (legal) tool often used by the wealthy to shield assets from estate taxes, and which contribute to the concentration of wealth.

Our families are among those most likely to be affected by this and we support it.

And we’re not the only ones who believe taxing the rich is good for Canada. Polls show that the vast majority of Canadians across the political spectrum support taxes on wealth.

Canadians are up against increasing cost of living and debt loads, rising health care costs, and an unprecedented housing crisis. At the same time, we are on the cusp of a massive intergenerational wealth transfer.

According to CPA Canada in 2023, $1 trillion will shift to GenXers and Millennials by 2026. Most of this wealth is held by a small number of Canadians, with 1 per cent of the country’s residents holding over a quarter of all wealth.

We need higher taxes to level out this rising wealth inequality. The increase to the capital gains inclusion rate will bring an estimated $19.3 billion in revenue to help Canada close the gap.

The government is using this revenue to fund new spending on priorities like Old Age Security, clean economy, medical care, child care, and housing, but it doesn’t go far enough to address class distortions decades in the making.

As Canadians with wealth- and class-privilege, we wish Canada was taxing the rich more — we’d also like to see a “super wealth tax,” an inheritance tax, and progressive property taxes — but we support this step. Let us pay our fair share.

This article was collectively written by individuals with wealth and class privilege, many of whom are members of the group Resource Movement. In addition to Emma Davis and Jonathan McPhedran Waitzer, this piece also includes the work and ideas of Britt Caron, Meaghan Sutton, Katie German, Sylvie Spraakman, Jenna Blumenthal, Lindsay Wiginton, Sylvie Trottier and Dan Hoyer.

https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/we-are-rich-canadians-and-we-support-higher-capital-gains-taxes/article_cff60e40-00ae-11ef-993d-5b4ce4b26fad.html

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