Hand-outs to Multibillion Dollar Companies Have to Stop

Another day another multi-million dollar corporate welfare hand out from the Liberal government to a multinational business.

Yes, if you haven’t seen the news, the Liberals have awarded $50 million to Mastercard to “help” them build an office in Vancouver. Why are we throwing tax money to a company that is coming up on being worth over $1 trillion USD? (Read here if you don’t believe me).

First, it was $12 million to the billionaire Weston family, owners of Loblaws, for refrigeration units, then it was $40 million to BlackBerry for autonomous vehicle software that the CEO of BlackBerry said wasn’t needed, now we’re looking at $50 million for Mastercard. Setting aside the fact that there are much better things to be spending tax dollars on, this is simply corporate welfare gone wild. This government, any government, should be working to set the conditions that make it better for business to invest on their own. Not subsidizing massive international companies with your money. This isn’t rocket science; it’s basic economics.

The fact of the matter is, a few ten million here and there adds up to one giant bill waiting for the next government. We know it won’t be this Liberal government that balances the books. And no, a balanced budget isn’t the “be-all-end-all”, but it’s an essential part of planning for the future, having the money to get projects moving when they’re needed (not announced now and started in the distant future), and funding for those who need it most. If you’re like me, and want to see an end to big paychecks for bigger corporations courtesy of the Canadian taxpayer, I encourage you to write to the Minister of Industry and voice your concerns. You can email him directly here: ISI.minister-ministre.ISI@Canada.ca