US President Donald Trump is proposing sweeping tax cuts that will affect every other country. Australia is not well placed to respond, with a lack of major tax reform since 2001. By contrast, Canada has been a successful tax reformer, with the federal-provincial corporate tax rate falling from 43% in 2001 to 27% in 2016 and the virtual elimination of capital taxes, amongst other policies.
How will tax changes proposed by Donald Trump affect both countries? Is Canada better placed because of the recent Canadian tax reforms?
The Centre for Independent Studies (CIS) and the Canadian Australian Chamber of Commerce (CACC) were pleased to host a joint event discussing these and other questions. This event heard from Canadian tax expert, Dr Jack Mintz, President’s Fellow, School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary and former chair of the Canada’s business tax panel that led to Canada’s reform, and Michael Potter, Research Fellow at CIS.
The event also discussed the sweeping implications of the US Republican party’s tax plans for the US, Canada and Australia: how the plans could encourage capital flight from Australia and Canada and severely worsen Australia’s disadvantage in the competition for global capital.