"The local video-game industry has also gone through booms and busts, most notably with the flight of jobs to places like Montreal, where the provincial government is less greedy in taxing this sector."

So Charlie, I take it your position is that corporate taxes are too high in BC and this is scaring away jobs to other jurisdictions? Was this your position with say, the HST? Or is that one not a job repellant? Or are you saying that the provincial government should have corporate tax credit scheme for every possible industry sector or any group organized enough to come looking for government concessions? This wouldn't be considered the "corporate cronyism" that I read about in the GS ad nauseum? Like ELectronic Arts is some sort of corporate charity case that can barely feed itself?

This is why nobody believes the left on taxes or economic matters in general.

Arthur Vandelay (which I'm sure is a pseudonym),

If you've read my articles over the years, you will see that I've always been much more critical of the low marginal tax rates on high-income individuals.

The capital-gains taxes, which largely benefit the rich, are also skewed.

Corporate profits are either taxed, reinvested, or paid out as dividends to shareholders.

If capital gains were taxed on a level playing field with employment income, there wouldn't be as much need to jack up corporate taxes.

The HST was a monumental tax shift from the corporate sector to individuals.

In an economy suffering from a decline in demand (which is different from the problems of inflation), this was not a smart way to go at that time.

Does that answer your question?

Charlie Smith

@Arthur Vandelay

Your comment is incoherent. The position on taxes is simple. Companies have a responsibility to pay them. The fact that companies can play locations off one another in choosing where to do business is terrible. Charlie's suggestion is about as good a solution as we're going to get.

You reference the opening of a Microsoft store in a mall and then reference the fact that the local tech industry has outpaced such mega-industries as ... hunting? ... as part of an indication of a local tech boom? May as well just compared the tech industries of 1913 Vancouver with 2013 Vancouver. Kudos to any local tech that has some success but look back 12 years or so at the state of the local tech and biotech industries and ask where they are now .. and why.

very little to no tech success in vancouver it's a real estate and marijuana town...Vancouverites are all about the quick buck.....the most un-ambitious city in the world

Attracting any sector to Vancouver is a tough job because of the extremely high business tax, rents and housing prices. There are a number of suburbs around Vancouver eager to be big players and they are falling all over themselves to steal whatever business they can by offering highly subsidized buildings and infrastructure. I work in high tech and although we are situated in a good location in Vancouver, it is very expensive to do so. The only reason we are staying here is that many of the software developers are young and living in apartments in the neighbourhood. As soon as they start to have kids they'll be moving to places like Surrey to be able to buy a house. Surrey will be the big winner in all of this. You might say who would want to live in a cultural wasteland like Surrey and you would have a good point. However, they only need to hop on the sky train to enjoy what Vancouver has to offer. I worry that Vancouver is rapidly becoming a resort and I hope that council starts to turn this around by building more office space and offering tax incentives to high tech and other businesses.

@charlie - all tax rates are paid personally because corporate taxes of any kind flow through to consumers in the price of the product. Further, the "rich", because they consume more, especially more non-essentials, are the primary payers of all taxes. Hence, all tax rates need to be competitive to those of your economic competitors, especially in our now global economy. That's the point I was making with HST. We will be there soon because virtually all of our competitors are. Make no mistake, downtown Calgary doesn't have twice as much office space as downtown Vancouver because corporate head offices like country music. All tax rates matter.

That being said, I am heartened to hear that you are not a corporate hater like the bulk of your party since corporations are kinda important in the global economy. The NDPs urge to milk the cow dry is the biggest problem the party has.

I do however disagree with your description of the Liberal govt as greedy for not pulling thir pants down for the gaming industry. At some point, enough is enough and it's just not worth it. I cannot think your greedy remark was anything than more Liberal bashing, which I don't mind if it's remotely earned.

@Hazlit - run along junior, the adults are talking now.

I have to agree with tedo. This is a town of money from questionable sources. What do we have? Real estate bubble pumpers, financed by half money laundering and half by a suicide pact between CMHC and what remains of the middle class, mining companies which is not all that different, and the drug trade itself, and an Ayn-Randite/cult member's spandex sales outlet.

Pop the RE bubble and commodity bubbles (likely to happen at the same time), legalize weed down south (happening), and a slight change in fashion, and Vancouver's standing as the naked emperor it is.

@ Alan

Your description of the problem and the mechanics of retaining tech workers is sound. Your proposed solution though is hopeless.

The only solution is a painful one for some: stop coddling the real estate sector. More "supply" won't help because it goes hand-in-glove with promotion of Vancouver RE as a valid "investment". Halting all assistance by the city in promoting Vancouver as a resort city for the rich, and forcing unused housing onto the rental market, is the only answer.

Charlie, I did not steal the money I make. The top 25% are already paying 80% of the benfits enjoyed by the other 75%.
Make a contribution to the welfare of Canadians: become yourself a high bracket taxpayer instead of hoping some bureucrats will steal from my pocket!