This is an interesting step towards another chance at an election. A Liberal MP put forward legislation that made it through the house of Commons and is off to the Senate for approval. This bill makes RESP contributions tax sheltered, much like an RRSP. ( Read "like an IRA" for any American's who might be reading here - not that I can imagine such a scenario).
It's apparently got a $900M pricetag against government revenue, and the Conservatives don't like it. Parents of course eat it up. The MP who championed the bill is shown papering his office with emails of support. Go figure, people like getting tax breaks. Offer a free case of beer with your tax return and see how many emails of support you get.
My problem with it (yikes, I'm siding with the Conservatives) is that such a program benefits education for rich people. The people that would have trouble affording post-secondary education don't have the cash (and sometimes not the knowhow) to wrangle up an RESP. If we want to blow $900M a year on education related benefits, how about lowering tuitions, or funding low-income students through their schooling.
Anyway, the Conservatives are putting together a bill to rescind the legislation if it goes through. If passed, the RESP bill dies, if defeated the government falls. Well, interesting of course, as the Liberals immediately say,that they will not defeat the latter bill.
And so it goes again.
We need an election to clear the clogged pipes. The liberals can't change leadership without an election to precipitate it. The Conservatives can't be deposed without it. The NDP and Greens can resolve their relative roles in the landscape without it either. The outcome would be either the same thing, or perhaps a reduced Conservative minority, or a Liberal Minority. Either way, it would have some value to clear the air.
When will the opposition get a backbone and vote down stuff that they don't support?
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