OTTAWA, ON: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation today offered up four New Year’s resolutions for the Trudeau government to help make 2021 a more taxpayer-friendly year than 2020.

“Obviously, 2020 is a year that most of us would rather forget, but there are some straightforward resolutions that the Trudeau government could adopt to help make 2021 far better,” said CTF Federal Director Aaron Wudrick.

“First, the Trudeau government should resolve to spend smarter. Yes, there is an emergency situation right now and some unplanned spending is unavoidable, but the problems with some of the early programs, such as fraudulent or improper use of CERB and CEWS, show how important it is to improve these programs and make sure money goes where it is needed most.

“Second, find ways to make life more affordable for Canadians. The first step should be to stop raising taxes! In spite of his (correct) observation that the last things Canadians need right now are higher costs, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has raised alcohol taxes, payroll taxes and carbon taxes, introduced a Netflix tax, and imposed a second carbon tax. He needs to freeze and reduce the tax burden, not increase it.

“Third, prioritize spending. The federal government has been unable to find a dollar in savings out of $355 billion in non-pandemic spending. This is in stark contrast to millions of Canadians who have taken pay cuts, lost their jobs, or lost their businesses.  If we really are all in this together, government needs to show it can make do with less just like everyone else.

“Finally, be more transparent. Trudeau came to office with a great set of pledges to improve government transparency, but failed to follow through. By some measures, he’s actually made things worse. The Trudeau government needs to lay out its fiscal plans for the future by producing a full federal budget as soon as possible.”