Breakenridge’s Oct. 8 Calgary Herald op-ed stating a Basic Personal Amount (BPA ) increase will help reduce poverty versus increasing the minimum wage is not based on fact.
Since the objective of BPA is to reduce the amount of taxes paid, low income earners receive very little benefit since they pay virtually no income tax.
Government of Canada’s own website “Cost Estimate of Increasing the BPA” states that Federal BPA indexed to CPI growth amount for 2024 will be $15,302. Saved individual tax payable will range from $1 to a high of $347. Average federal taxes savings paid by family type for single person family will be $189, couples with children $573, couples without children $467, and single parent family $336.
Based on 2,000 annual worked hours, raising the minimum wage by $1 would increase the low income earner’s wages by $2,000 while BPA gives them less than $200.
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and Policy Note state that low-income households get little benefit from raising the BPA.
Rob Breakenridge should do a retraction or correction, but this is highly unlikely.
Lin Gackle
Cochrane, AB
