Stephen Harper Says No to Tax Hikes

Stephen Harper announced in a news conference in Welland, Ontario that he won't hike taxes or cut spending to deal with Canada's ballooning debt.  He says that Canada is on track to balance the federal budget by 2016.

Opposition to Harper, such as the NDP, point out that Harper will raise taxes through the back door by increasing EI premiums and the introduction of the Harmonized Sales Tax, both expected to give Ottawa billions of extra revenue per year.

Many experts believe that there are only two options to eliminate the deficit: either through tax increases or through cuts in spending.  The fact that Harper is proposing to do neither only fortifies the belief of cynics who have serious doubts about Harper's plan moving forward.

Critics have a reason for feeling uneasy about the sincerity of Harper's predictions on the federal budget.  Just last year, Harper said that Canada would not run into a deficit for 2009.  A year later, Harper's prediction looks awfully bad considering the $56 billion shortfall that the government will accrue in 2009.