Opinion

Over the past few weeks, many of you have come in to discuss with me the pro’s and con’s of the harmonized sales tax. The experience has been positive. I thank you and I urge everyone to get accurate information either from my office or from the website hstinbc.ca.

Let’s assume that when everyone in B.C. gets to be finance minister for a day, a majority choose to throw a $3-billion chair through the office window to show how mad they are about the harmonized sales tax. The cleanup will take two years, but first there will be a provincial election to decide who holds the broom and dustpan. And the choices are becoming clear.

There has always been some confusion about the title of our newspaper and how ‘free’ doesn’t mean ‘free.’

Kootenay East MLA Bill Bennett has recently been urging his constituents to access an HST website claiming that it is part of ‘public information campaign which shares both sides of the issue’.

I would like to share with you some thoughts from the community. As I realize your reporters are reporting on things that are brought up at a city council meeting of which most community members do not attend.

Opponents of the HST can't seem to resist making the tax sound worse than it really is.

The Tourism Industry Association of B.C. has struggled with the impact of the harmonized sales tax, but supports it at a reduced rate.