Singh vows to crack down on billionaires, close corporate tax loopholes

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Published August 30, 2021 at 10:45 am

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OTTAWA — NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is re-committing to a crackdown on “ultra-rich” tax dodgers.

At a campaign stop today across the Rideau Canal from Parliament, Singh said he would zero in on tax evasion and close loopholes that benefit billionaires.

The New Democrats’ plan to halt what he called the “free ride for the wealthy” ranges from tougher enforcement at the Canada Revenue Agency to enhancing corporate tax transparency and capping stock option gains that are taxed at a lower rate.

In 2019, two reports from the CRA and the parliamentary budget officer found that Ottawa could be losing out on up to $51 billion in uncollected taxes each year due to illegal tax evasion and legal tax avoidance.

CRA data from earlier this summer showed its recent efforts to combat tax evasion by the super-rich resulted in zero prosecutions or convictions.

The Liberals are also pledging to crack down on illicit tax schemes and launch a new ownership registry for numbered companies by 2025, while Conservatives have promised to reform the CRA and imbue Canada’s taxpayer ombudsman with order-making authority.

The Canadian Press

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