How far can you stretch the truth If you're leader of the federal Liberal Party, the answer is ten years- and counting. Despite endless Liberal promises to "scrap it," the goods and services tax has raided consumer pocket books now for a full decade.

The GST was originally Brian Mulroney's New Year's gift to Canada in 1991, or should I say time bomb. Packaged as a fair substitute to the 13.5% manufacturer's tax, the GST became a lightening rod for public protest. So wound-up were otherwise sleepy Canadian taxpayers that they showed up at "Axe the Tax" rallies and signed petitions in the tens of thousands.

Routed in the next election, the Conservatives passed the poisoned GST chalice to the Liberals and ever since have struggled for redemption.

The Liberal promise to "abolish" the tax before sweeping into power in 1993 claimed its casualties. Heritage Minister Sheila Copps was forced to resign her seat because the tax was not neutered. She returned to Parliament in a subsequent by-election.

Another Liberal MP, John Nunziata - of "rat-pack" fame - was unceremoniously turfed from caucus after voting against the budget in protest to the GST policy. By the way, he too returned to Parliament, not as a Liberal but as an Independent MP.

Like them or not, Nunziata and Copps were as shrewd as any "Survivor" series contestant. The Liberal Party's recovery from the GST debacle was less impressive. Thanks to vote splitting between Conservatives and Reformers, the Liberals took the 1997 election with a mere 38% of the popular vote.

Disregard Ottawa's spending spree and the original GST plan didn't sound like such a bad idea. Conservative finance minister Michael Wilson pitched the tax on the commitment to erase the national debt. "All GST revenues will be allocated solely to the effort to bring the public debt under control," promised Wilson.

It never happened. The Tories and the Grits had a better plan. Run deficits and pile up the national debt to a record high $583 billion by 1997.

Hindsight they say is 20/20. But how much better off would we be had GST revenues actually been used to retire the debt

Since 1991, Ottawa raked in over $185 billion thanks to the GST. Had the federal government put our money where its mouth is, the national debt would now be considerably less at $384 billion. Imagine the billions of dollars that could have been freed up for tax cuts.

Canadians would have enjoyed one of the greatest sustained periods of economic growth. Many of us would have lived to see the national debt erased.

The Conservative Party may even have been vindicated for introducing the tax that killed the debt. The Liberal promise to smash the GST would be forgotten. Today's $41 billion annually spent on debt interest would likely be used to appease pressure groups by cutting taxes and increasing social spending.

As it happens, Ottawa still turns a blind eye to the debt; promising only a $4 billion reduction and praying interest rates remain steady. A legislated debt-reduction plan is as amorphous as ever.

At the current rate, the GST will be 140 years old before the debt is retired. By then, the Liberals will have about 35 election campaigns to come clean on its GST policy.

Ten years after the acrimony over the GST, the Liberal party is adrift and the Canadian Alliance is coasting on a wave of Conservative defections and growing support for tax relief.

Stockwell Day can credit both Conservatives and Liberals for his current success. Broken promises over the GST broke faith with the public. Barring any unforeseen vote splitting, that rupture may still turn the tables in the next general election.