May 15, 2012, Vancouver – The Canadian Food and Restaurant Association says British Columbia’s restaurant industry
welcomes new legislation that brings the province closer towards the
improved Provincial Sales Tax system that will replace the HST next
March.
May 15, 2012, Vancouver – The Canadian Food and Restaurant Association says British Columbia’s restaurant industry
welcomes new legislation that brings the province closer towards the
improved Provincial Sales Tax system that will replace the HST next
March.
The legislation, tabled yesterday, will reintroduce all the PST exemptions
that were in place prior to the introduction of the HST – including
restaurant meals. Liquor mark-ups will also be reduced to fully offset
the additional three per cent tax on liquor that will take place when the PST is
reintroduced.
“The CRFA has been meeting with the B.C. government for several months
on this issue, and we are pleased the government is listening to the
industry’s concerns,” said Mark von Schellwitz, the CRFA's Western Canada vice-president.
CRFA forecasts that with the return to the PST exemption, a stronger
economy, and rising employment, B.C.’s restaurant industry will grow a
healthy 2.7 per cent in 2013 when adjusted for inflation. That’s a stark
contrast from the 3.3 per cent drop in real restaurant sales last year, which
was the worst performance out of all the provinces. Lost sales added up
to about $475 million in the first year and three months since the HST
was introduced.
Print this page
