B.C. budget leaves restaurant industry hungry for answers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sept. 1, 2009
VICTORIA – Today’s budget leaves the province’s restaurant and foodservice industry hungry for answers on how the government will offset the negative impact of the 12% HST on restaurant sales.
“As it stands, there is nothing in this budget to offset the significant negative impacts of the HST on the restaurant industry. Even Finance Minister Hansen recognizes that the restaurant industry will be hurt by the HST,” says Garth Whyte, President and CEO of the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (CRFA). “We are encouraged that the government has publicly stated that it is open to working with us to mitigate the impacts.”
CRFA estimates that the new 12% HST will cause more than a 7% drop in restaurant sales. When the GST was introduced, restaurant sales in B.C. experienced their single greatest annual decline.
“The HST will deliver a huge hit to restaurant operators. The government is plucking $750 million from the restaurant industry and it needs to find a way to give it back,” says Whyte.
The HST adds up to “three strikes against the restaurant industry,” he says. “It’s going to eat into our sales, most of our costs aren’t eligible for input tax credits, and there’s a five-year delay in the tax credits for business meals.”
B.C.’s restaurant and foodservice industry is one of the top private-sector employers in the province, with 173,000 direct jobs, representing 7.5% of the provincial workforce.
CRFA is one of Canada's largest business associations, with 33,000 members representing independent and chain restaurants, bars, caterers, institutions and other foodservice providers. Canada's $60-billion foodservice industry employs more than one million people in communities across the country.
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