Finance Minister Bill Morneau made a second announcement regarding changes to the Liberals’ small business tax proposal on Wednesday, focusing on the passive investment income policy. He said the government will allow up to $50,000 in passive income in a year before higher tax rates kick in to provide flexibility for business owners who want… Read more »
Category: Ag Policy
On NAFTA: the U.S. is not negotiating, it’s making demands
As round four of the NAFTA talks comes to a close, you have to wonder why it took the U.S. this long to finally come around to the stiff demands laid out in round four. From auto to dairy, the U.S. provided a list of demands that Canada and Mexico have described as unacceptable, and,… Read more »
A possible win for farmers, another blow for Bill Morneau
This was probably not the scenario Bill Morneau envisioned when he decided to leave his Bay Street executive position and run for the Liberals in the 2015 federal election. The finance minister has quickly fallen from star candidate status to liability, as underlined by Prime Minister Trudeau’s awkward attempts to block reporters from questioning him… Read more »
Canada rejecting aggressive demands, while refusing to walk away from NAFTA talks
The tone surrounding NAFTA negotiations certainly turned during the fourth round of talks, which wrapped up Tuesday in Arlington, Virginia. Pessimistic or gloomy would be appropriate descriptors, definitely out of tune, even if you’re optimistic. After three rounds with little progress, U.S. negotiators came out swinging, tabling multiple ‘non-starters’ in the eyes of Canada and… Read more »
CFA calls federal tax announcement a “step in the right direction”
The federal government’s announcement that it will reduce the small business tax rate over the next two years and cancel plans for new restrictions to lifetime capital gains exemptions is “a positive sign,” according to the president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Finance Minister Bill Morneau and Small Business and… Read more »
Liberals drop plan to restrict lifetime capital gains exemptions
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Finance Minister Bill Morneau and Small Business and Tourism Minister Bardish Chagger took a quick trip to Stouffville, Ontario on Monday morning to announce the lowering of small business tax rates, and a change to the controversial small business tax proposal they introduced in July. “We made a promise to middle… Read more »
U.S. dairy request a ‘non-starter,’ says ag minister
American requests for changes to Canada’s supply management system for dairy and poultry are a “non-starter,” said Canada’s agriculture minister on Monday. U.S. negotiators introduced an initial dairy proposal on Friday, which calls for increased transparency and changes to Canada’s milk class system, including the elimination of the new class 7 that has taken away… Read more »
U.S. tables dairy proposal in NAFTA talks
The U.S. introduced its much-anticipated proposal regarding dairy during NAFTA negotiations on Friday, although it did not contain an explicit request for a percentage increase in market access into Canada. The American proposal was focused on changing Canada’s milk class system and increasing transparency in supply management. The proposal would reverse recent changes to Canada’s… Read more »
Four scenarios if Trump tries to pull out of NAFTA
The tone surrounding the negotiations to update NAFTA has taken a gloomy turn, especially for agriculture, with a growing consensus that there’s a real chance President Trump will try to follow through on his repeated threats to pull the U.S. out of NAFTA. Even Prime Minister Trudeau, after meeting with Trump on Wednesday, sounded like someone… Read more »
From the show ring to the tax file
What does the show ring at the World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisconsin and Liberal tax proposals have in common? Depending on the day and the country, you’ll find 22-year-old Dennis Catt in the middle of both. Last week, Catt and his Ontario 4-H judging teammates eyeballed udders and contemplated cow confirmation as they competed… Read more »
Energy East pipeline cancellation an opportunity lost for rural Canada
Last week TransCanada Corp announced its withdrawal from the 1.1 million barrel per day Energy East pipeline project in Canada. The cancellation of this $15.7 billion project has created much unrest or satisfaction depending where you live in Canada. The pipeline’s concept was to take oil east for domestic use and exports abroad. The pipeline… Read more »
Manitoba gov’t moving ahead with carbon tax after getting legal opinion
The Manitoba government released an independent expert legal opinion on whether the federal government has the constitutional authority to impose a ‘backstop’ on carbon pricing on Wednesday. The province says the 64-page assessment, conducted by Dr. Bryan Schwartz at the University of Manitoba, determined Ottawa can impose carbon pricing, but that the province likely would… Read more »
Seeing safety as the ‘sustainability imperative’
Gord Winkel’s occupational history revolves largely around Alberta’s oil sands, having managed operations for Imperial Oil/ExxonMobil and Syncrude Canada. And he’s now bringing his experience in oil and gas workplace safety to the agriculture sector. Currently the University of Alberta’s chair and Industrial Professor of Engineering Safety and Risk Management, Winkel is also the facilitator… Read more »
U.S. expected to come out swinging in round four of NAFTA talks
The first three rounds of the three city touring NAFTA talks have seen many handshakes, a few trials balloons and agreement on predictable texts. Round four will begin back in DC mid-week and is expected to have some more drama and rocky moments as predicted by Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland at the outset… Read more »
U.S. dairy industry seeking export demand relief
While margins have been “okay” for most of 2017 thanks to lower feed costs, large milk supplies continue to weigh on U.S. dairy prices and the outlook for the dairy market. “We’re so full in terms of capacity for processing, everybody’s looking at where export markets are going to go and how that’s going to… Read more »