Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland is standing by her government’s decision not to impose a windfall tax on oil and gas companies in this week’s fall economic statement, despite calls from the NDP to do so and other G7 countries to follow suit. Freeland released her fall economic statement Thursday, which gave an update on the state of the Canadian economy and detailed the Liberals’ spending plans. As Freeland had pointed out in the weeks leading up to the statement, she had little evidence of new spending, but it includes previously announced targeted measures such as the doubling of the GST credit, dental benefits for some children under 12 and a one-off renewal for low income tenants. The economic update also includes a “downside scenario,” an indication of the worst-case projected deficit if Canada enters a mild recession in the new year. But the Liberals’ supply and confidence partners, the NDP, are calling for a windfall tax on big companies, including oil and gas companies, on top of the windfall tax on banks and insurance companies announced in the last budget. The windfall tax is a higher tax rate on certain above-average earnings resulting from unexpected circumstances, such as the war in Ukraine, which has led to record revenues for oil and gas companies. But in an interview on CTV’s Question Period with Joyce Napier that aired Sunday, Freeland said it’s not something the government is considering right now. “The windfall tax on financial institutions was based on a very specific set of facts,” he said. “During the COVID-19 lockdown, the federal government undertook extraordinary emergency spending. We’re basically putting a line, a net, under the Canadian economy.” “It was the right thing to do,” he also said. “And it also really, really helped our financial institutions.” Instead, Freeland cited the two percent tax on share purchases by large companies, a new measure included in the economic statement, which she said was “the right measure to ensure fairness, but also vital to create the right incentives for Canada’s largest companies. including our oil and gas companies.” “We absolutely agree that everyone in Canada should pay their fair share,” Freeland said. “So we have the luxury of having the strong compassionate society and social safety net that is so much a part of Canada and being Canadian.” “We chose to approach it in this autumn financial statement in a slightly different – but I think very smart – way,” he added. Meanwhile, the NDP is also calling for the Liberals to eliminate the GST on home heating, while the Conservatives want to cut the carbon tax. With files from CTV News’ Stephanie Ha
