My husband and I just finished powering through the first season of House of Cards on Netflix. Watching the power-hungry Machiavellian main character, Congressman Frank Underwood, wheel and deal as he seeks to get ahead is entertaining.
While his antics are extreme and utterly unrealistic (I hope), it is a good reminder that in the blood sport of politics good public policy will often take a back seat.
In B.C., we've seen our fair share of political drama, including the recent introduction of the HST and subsequent outrage, a referendum and a return back to the PST. Not surprisingly, making changes to the PST is not high on any politician's priority list.
But we need to talk about it, and here's why. With the return of the PST, B.C. is now the highest tax jurisdiction in Canada for new business investment.
Being a high tax outlier does not bode well for our communities. That is why the expert panel on B.C.'s tax competitiveness recommended finding a made-in-B.C. solution to fix the tax last fall.
The panel suggested taking PST off the portion of business inputs that are most important to grow businesses and increase employee wages - investments in machinery, equipment and computer technology.
Under the current PST, there is already an exemption for some machinery and equipment for the manufacturing sector. This exemption should be extended to all industries as soon as possible.
The importance of this really hit home last year when I was standing in the yard of a shake and shingle mill in rural B.C.
The yard was filled with equipment - loaders, trucks and other tools needed to do the job. The owner simply said: "I am just worried that with the return of the PST, businesses are going to stop investing in capital."
The PST is an old-fashioned tax that needs to be modernized for 21st century businesses. Removing the tax on investments, helping companies grow, allowing them to hire more British Columbians and increase wages and benefits is good public policy.
The question now is whether any leader in B.C. will be brave enough to start the conversation in such a way that good policy and good politics can come together.
Congressman Frank Underwood probably wouldn't bet on it, but I'm more optimistic. For the sake of the thousands of small businesses that help support our communities, I hope I win that bet.
Laura Jones is the executive vice-president for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.
