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“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

Op-Ed: Ottawa’s costly pursuit of the poor The government cites inefficiency as a reason to end taxes on vacant homes and yachts — yet keeps pouring money into futile litigation over pandemic-era benefits (Canadian Affairs)

The federal government’s 2025 budget quietly ended the Underused Housing Tax — a measure that was meant to discourage vacant homes and foreign ownership in overheated markets. A separate tax was removed that applied to yachts and private aircraft.

The official reasons were straightforward: the programs were too complex and not cost effective. They tied up administrative resources, created confusion and yielded little in revenue. In other words, the compliance burden wasn’t worth it.

The decision made sense. But what’s striking is how that same reasoning is rarely applied when the burden of complexity falls on people at the other end of the income scale ...

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