Liberals reject Poilievre’s call for tax relief on GM workers’ severance pay
BNN Bloomberg
The federal Liberal government is rejecting a call from the Opposition Conservatives to grant a tax reprieve on severance packages for laid-off General Motors workers in Ingersoll, Ont.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre sent a letter Sunday to Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne calling for an exemption to the withholding taxes applied to severance pay.
Champagne’s office flatly rejected the call Monday, saying such a policy would hobble the government’s ability to respond when problems arise and accusing the Conservatives of playing partisan political games.
In his letter, Poilievre argued taxes on GM’s lump-sum severance payments could deprive out-of-work employees of “tens of thousands of dollars,” adding “insult to injury.”
He wrote that waiting until after tax season to recover funds is not a reasonable solution for workers who recently lost their regular paycheques and still need money for their mortgages and grocery bills.
“These men and women worked hard, played by the rules and built things this country depends on. The least your government can do is stop taking their money at the worst possible moment,” his letter said.
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