CRFA gives Ont. budget a C grade

By Canadian Pizza March 30, 2011

News

March 30, 2011, Toronto – There is a major flaw in Ontario’s provincial
budget, according to the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices
Association (CRFA). The association claims the budget fails to offer a
plan to help Ontario’s $23 billion restaurant industry grow.

“Over the past decade, Ontario’s restaurant sector created more jobs than the forestry, fisheries, agriculture and finance sectors combined. It created more than four times the jobs created in the auto sector,” says Garth Whyte, president and CEO of the CRFA. “Yet when you look in the 2011 Ontario Budget, there is a plan for the manufacturing, automotive, agriculture, financial services, mining, tourism, forestry and information and technology sectors – but no plan for the restaurant sector.”

“This major oversight downgrades this budget report card from a good grade to a passing grade,” says Ron Reaman, CRFA’s vice-president for Ontario. “The government has missed a golden job-creating opportunity by not outlining a plan for the restaurant sector that is so important to every community in the province.”

The budget gets good grades for focusing on reducing the deficit by finding savings through expenditure reductions and program efficiencies rather than increasing taxes. However the CRFA’s budget report card, which evaluates the budget for fiscal policies that create conditions for the industry’s success and a strong overall provincial economy, is more of a mixed bag.

Below is the CRFA’s 2011 Ontario Budget Report Card:

	ISSUE	CRFA RECOMMENDATION	GOVERNMENT ACTION	GRADE
1.	Restaurant and foodservice jobs and growth plan	Ontario Government recognizes the Ontario restaurant industry's significant job creation and economic contributions	Budget ignores a "key sector" of the Ontario economy	F
2.	Labour costs	Lower government labour costs and maintain the student and liquor server differential wage rates Resist payroll tax increases for labour intensive businesses	Government freezes the general minimum wage and maintains the differential wage rates, but still the highest of any province Ontario Government pushing for CPP premium increases	C+
3.	Beverage alcohol	Review and implement recommendations of the Beverage Alcohol System Review Panel and introduce true wholesale pricing at the LCBO and The Beer Store	No action	F
4.	Tax burden	Implement long term tax reduction plan to create conditions for investment, greater economic activity and growth	Follow through on commitments to move to a single CIT rate of 10 per cent and PIT cuts	B+
5.	Debt/deficit reduction	Implement strategic debt/deficit reduction plan to create a more favourable long term business environment	Deficit reduced through expenditure reductions and program efficiencies rather than increased taxes	B+
6.	Environment	Ontario government renew the 50/50 cost sharing arrangement currently in place between industry and municipalities for the blue box, which promotes public and private partnerships to meet recycling goals.	No action	No mark
7.	Municipal taxes	Government of Ontario to remove the power of City of Toronto to impose any new Municipal Sales Taxes Government of Ontario must not extend any new taxation powers to other municipalities	Government has not expanded taxing powers to other municipalities, but has not removed the threat by repealing the City of Toronto Act	C-
8.	Labour shortage	Work with the business community on a long-term, comprehensive labour shortage strategy to ensure hiring needs are met	Budget silent on labour shortage strategy	No mark
9.	Red tape	Government of Ontario to work with industry to identify opportunities to reduce red tape and unnecessary paper burden on restaurant owners	Open for Business initiative is step in the right direction and needs to address restaurant specific issues	B

In a press release, the CRFA awarded the budget a passing grade of C, noting: “While there were some steps in the right direction, the Government of Ontario needs to do more to recognize the critical role of Ontario’s $23 billion restaurant industry. More is needed to instill confidence in the province’s business environment so that the restaurant industry can continue to invest, create jobs and grow in the future.”

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