Taxpayers ask New Brunswick to lower taxes, reduce spending

Author: 2022/01/27

CTF published its prebudget submission to the Government of New Brunswick this morning.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is asking the Higgs government to lower taxes to help families face the rising cost of living.

“We’ve all felt it at the grocery store or at the pump: prices have risen sharply in the last year,” said CTF Interim Atlantic Director Renaud Brossard. “By taking less cash out of taxpayers’ pockets, the government would help struggling New Brunswickers.”

The CTF is asking the government of New Brunswick to lower New Brunswickers’ income tax bills by 10 per cent. For a taxpayer earning $50,000 this year, the savings would represent $404 annually.

To provide tax relief, the CTF is asking Premier Blaine Higgs to bring government employee compensation down to private sector levels.

“Bureaucrats should not get paid a premium over their private-sector peers simply because they happen to work for the government,” said Brossard. “It’s time for the province to bring these compensation packages back to a level comparable to that of the average New Brunswicker.”

Provincial government employees in New Brunswick get a 11.9 per cent wage premium over the rest of the province’s labour market, when adjusting for education. This costs New Brunswick taxpayers $451.7 million per year.

Taxpayers are also asking the government to conduct a thorough program review, pointing out that spending has gone up by 20 per cent since the province completed its last review in 2016.

“Like any organisation, governments need to take a good look at what they’re doing and find out how it can do it more efficiently,” said Brossard. “With nearly $11 billion spent last year, there are many ways the government of New Brunswick can save money.”

The measures proposed by the CTF would reinvest $313.6 million into New Brunswick’s economy, which would be made possible thanks to $581.8 million in budgetary savings.

To consult the CTF’s prebudget submission, click here: https://www.taxpayer.com/media/CTF%20-%20Roadmap%20for%20Growth%20NB%20-%20V1%20-%20Dec%2027,%202021.pdf

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