TORONTO - Poverty advocates say they're not against the merged sales tax as long as it comes with the right conditions to help the province's poorest residents.
Greg deGroot Maggetti of the 25 to 5 Network for Poverty Reduction says taxes are important to fund public services, which are key at a time of recession.
But he says he's worried about what that will mean for low- and modest-income households, and wants to ensure the right tax cuts are in place to offset the impact of any higher tax.
He says there are five key things the government can do to make sure the HST doesn't hurt the poor, including staggered tax credits, outreach efforts to ensure those credits are being used and the exclusion of basic goods and services.
He was testifying at the last day of public hearings into the HST, set up after opposition protests and negotiations.
The hearings went on despite efforts to derail the legislation by the Progressive Conservatives, who on Friday came up with half-million amendments to the bill to create a 13 per cent sales tax next summer.
