As you may have noticed, there is a federal election campaign going on.  My clients have been asking for my thoughts on it.  I want you to know that when I share my impressions, I intend to be apolitical, by focusing on dollars and cents.  Here goes.
 
Overall, I have not heard anything especially promising about economic matters, Canadian competitiveness or taxes, three issues that should be of great concern to us all.  Conservative leader Andrew Scheer has vowed to remove some of the small business taxes that were imposed by our current government, which on the one hand is helpful to small business, but on the other, will only deepen our out-of-control deficit – which will cause havoc whenever the next recession arrives.
 
Scheer is far from the only one paying insufficient attention to the deficit issue.  NDP leader Jagmeet Singh, for example, has committed $10-billion over the next four years for 500,000 childcare spots nationally. This dollar figure is designed to keep daycare at $10 per day, which is a wonderful goal, and would be even more wonderful if we could afford it.  Maybe to make a dent in it, Singh is also promising to raise the capital gains tax from 50% to 75% - an enormous increase that I think is full-on repressive. 
 
The Liberals are also talking about running big deficits.  Prime Minister Trudeau, for example, has promised to spend $150-million per year on bursaries for 75,000 low-income families to go camping in a provincial or national park, four days each year. 
 
I can relate
As a small child growing up in rural Newfoundland, camping was not a priority – first, because we were already surrounded by wilderness, and second, because if my parents were to suddenly receive $2,000 from the government, they would have spent it on things like food, or saved it for my education.  So I think it’s a stretch to assume that today’s low-income families consider $2,000 spent on camping as the best possible allocation of resources.
 
Complications
The objective of these targeted tax and spend initiatives is to sway key segments of the electorate, which is all fair and good in an election campaign. What concerns me, in addition to putting ourselves further into debt, is that if enacted, such policies will make our tax code even more complicated than it already is.
It will mean more receipts, more boxes to fill on your tax return and more work for accountants.  I wish they would take the opposite route, and simplify.
 
Note, though, that none of the above will affect your portfolio in any way, and that there are, as of today, no significant tax planning opportunities that are apparent as a result of the election.
 
A word on Trump
Those are my thoughts on the election campaign so far.  So I will spend just a moment on another issue that my clients often ask me about:  Donald Trump. 
 
His unpredictable behaviour creates a great deal of worry, but here is the thing:  since Trump became president, our clients’ portfolios have done very well.  And when he does send out a negative tweet, one that sends stock prices tumbling?  It just gives us the opportunity to buy at a discount – and then the market, as it always does eventually, goes up again.
 
So, there you have it:  my hopefully apolitical views on happenings on both sides of the border.  Here in Canada, be sure to action your very personal political view on Tuesday October 21st.
 
Want to discuss any aspect of the above or any other issue on your mind? I am always happy to receive your call, email or visit. PS Feel free to share this message with someone you care about!