The controversial Harmonized Sales Tax is being implemented in B.C. this Thursday, but critics say the political war being waged over the tax is long from over.
Anti-HST campaigners held a celebration in West Vancouver on Saturday to thank the roughly 750,000 people who signed a petition to recall the tax.
Former Premier Bill Vander Zalm also pledged to continue fighting the HST after it takes effect on July 1. "We're going to keep campaigning till the HST is gone, so we'll keep doing this," Vander Zalm said. "We'll do whatever it takes."
Meanwhile, B.C.'s Finance Minister Colin Hansen was at an economic forum in Vancouver's Chinatown neighbourhood, where he was bombarded by concerns over the tax.
Hansen responded that "just about every industry" will benefit from the tax. "I would predict that we will see restaurant sales in this coming six months being stronger than they were in the same six-month-period last year," he said.
An Elections BC ruling has prevented the government from mailing out information defending the HST, forcing the minister to address citizens' questions personally.
"We're looking at rolling out some ads, probably early in July, once we're past the blackout period," he said.
But a new survey by Ipsos Reid suggests the government has an uphill battle ahead of it. The poll suggests 85 per cent of British Columbians feel the HST will have a negative impact on them.
Most participants also said they will cut down on restaurant meals, snacks, and live entertainment to save money.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Penny Daflos
