“Fed Up Yet” with the upcoming HST? Time to bite back!

Back in August we mentioned about the looming HST that will be implemented in July 2010. There has been some rumblings and effort in fighting it but the big guys are coming in big time. The Canadian Restaurant and Food Services Association and the BC Restaurant and Food Services Association are going full force in pressuring the government to exempt the restaurant industry from the HST with an all encompassing campaign, No Meal Tax.

In short the BC government will be combining the taxes (PST and GST) into the Harmonization Tax (HST). This tax of 12% will be applied to all goods and services. This means adding an extra 7% to the existing 5% to your bill. This will be applied to the coffee and muffin you get in the morning…. to your dinner in Gastown… to that late night pizza after some Granville Street club hopping.

This major collaborative campaign includes the online headquarters, NoMealTax.ca. This central website enables people to have their voices heard by providing comments, signing up for the petition, and getting the latest information about HST and the campaign. Consumers can also show their support by following them on Twitter (@nomealtax) or Facebook.

So how this would affect us? Here’s some numbers:

1. Economic analysis indicates this will lead to a 7.5% drop in restaurant sales
2. The potential drop in sales equates to $750 million loss in BC within 1 year of the HST introduction
3. BC restaurant and food services employs 173,000 people – more than the agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining, and oil and gas sectors COMBINED
4. According to a recent survey, nearly 25% of us have a direct connection to the food industry (ie via employment, have immediate family and/or owns business in this sector)

As foodies, food and wine lovers, coffee drinkers, restaurateurs and/or staff it’s time to speak out! Let us know what you think and head over to NoMealTax.ca to show your support.