The Importance of Provincial Budgets: Elbows Up and No Bracket Creep!

Some of the right things are happening in Nova Scotia, from the perspective of improving standards of living in that province.  And that’s important news because according to the Fraser Institute, Canadians have suffered the worst five-year decline in their standard of living over the 2020-to-2024 period since the Great Depression.  It notes, our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per person decreased by 2.0% (0.4% annually) ; this despite aggregate GDP growth of 1.5% over the period.  Further, all ten provinces are experiencing stagnation, which is unique in our history.  So what’s the good news in Nova Scotia, at this critical juncture?

With every passing week Canadians are facing enormous changes due to the pandemic and governments are quickly addressing this with new measures to cope with the economic hardships occurring. This week’s revised Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) responds to criticism that the first attempt left too many people out and increases the $900 bi-weekly payment proposed to $2000 monthly for up to four months. Here are the details. 

The province of Ontario postponed its formal multi-year budget forecast to November 15 yesterday, choosing instead to use the earlier-announced budget date of March 25 to table a COVID-19 fiscal action plan. The details are comprehensive, as is our round-up of provincial measures for businesses so far. There are some generous and genuinely interesting provisions. Take a look:

The Temporary Wage Subsidy for Employers is a three-month measure that will allow eligible employers to reduce the amount of payroll deductions they’re required to remit to the CRA. It was introduced as part of the government’s pandemic support for businesses. It is already in effect, and we’re sharing the details on how this works.

This new online tax training program is the right one for unusual times in the tax and financial services. Not only does it address the myriad of changes on the 2019 tax return, it also provides an important professional program during an unprecedented health crisis. It is an important training solution for four specific needs:

During this time of uncertainty, more Canadians need to  feel financial peace of mind, and the guidance a qualified Real Wealth Manager™ can provide with a critically important strategy, process and success-oriented skillset. That’s why if you’re looking for continuing professional education, now is a great time earn the RWM™ credentials online. Until March 31 save an additional $50, too.

COVID-19 Response at Knowledge Bureau. We are committed to personal and community safety, so our educational and instructional team is at your side from their home-based offices. It is a good time to stay in touch, by email or phone. We would love to hear from you , even just to know you are okay... so please stay in touch.