B.C. businesses eating $6.5B in government-imposed costs over three years: report
Global News
The Greater Vancouver Board of Trade says significant government-imposed costs, amounting nearly $6.5 billion, will be shouldered by B.C. businesses between 2022 and 2024.
B.C. businesses are on the hook for billions associated with government-imposed costs, a report has found.
A Greater Vancouver Board of Trade report, Counting the Costs: Assessing Economic Challenges for Businesses in British Columbia, has identified a significant cost increase for businesses, amounting to nearly $6.5 billion between 2022 and 2024.
These cost increases include the corporate tax rate, the payroll tax imposed just prior to the pandemic, new paid sick leave, and the business portion of the escalating carbon tax.
“Small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) are disproportionately impacted by higher interest rates and rising costs that are making it incredibly challenging for them to grow and thrive,” said Bridgitte Anderson, Greater Vancouver Board of Trade’s CEO and president.
“The report found that between 2022 and 2024, businesses in B.C. will shoulder an additional $6.5 billion in direct costs imposed by governments as they grapple with what is an already daunting economic outlook.”
The report broke down the cost total as follows:
Businesses are gaining around 873 million in savings related to SME tax rate and PST on non-residential electricity, the report said.
In addition to these costs, there has been a 17 per cent rise in the minimum wage rate from 2019 to 2023, a nearly 10 per cent increase in the top personal tax rate, as well as a new statutory holiday which costs $200 million, and the restoration of the HST, which has cost business $3.7 billion in 2022 alone, according to the report.
The FIFA draw ceremony will mark the first time Prime Minister Mark Carney, U.S. President Donald Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum will be in the same room.
A new report finds anglophones face higher unemployment and lower wages in Quebec; gaps that researchers say carry major economic consequences.
Critics are questioning the solidity of Saab's pitch to deliver 10,000 jobs in Canada if it decides to set up shop here to assemble Gripen fighter jets.
The girl’s disappearance underscores long-standing concerns about the ease with which a parent can take a child to another country without the other parent’s knowledge or consent.
Asbestos cleanup, tight work windows and other TTC delays have slowed the build out of 5G cellular service in Toronto's subway system.
Alberta's UCP government is changing the rules to make it easier for citizens to force a referendum on issues such as the prospect of the province leaving Confederation.
An at-home DNA test given as a birthday gift solved an 80-year family mystery by revealing that a man in Quebec and a man in the Netherlands were long-lost brothers.
Lina Vargas was on the board for almost two years and told Global News that accountability and transparency are fundamental rights for all community members.
Industry Minister Melanie Joly told the House of Commons committee on international trade the move breaches federal contracts tied to manufacturing in Brampton and Windsor, Ont.
A targeted home invasion and kidnapping led to a gunpoint standoff with police and an overnight chase across Toronto. Two suspects remain at large, investigators say.
In a post on his LinkedIn account, Simon Donner says he resigned on Tuesday and he is grateful for the opportunity to help shape climate policy in Canada.
The development charges can vary greatly from city to city, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation report found.
The three leaders will be in Washington, D.C., for the FIFA World Cup draw, marking the first time they will be in the same room together.