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© St. Petersburg Times, published October 27, 2002
A Canadian Senate committee is recommending new taxes that would provide the government with $5-billion a year for health care.
It suggested raising the money by a 1.5 percent increase to the 7 percent Goods and Services Tax or through insurance premiums in the tax system. The GST is collected in addition to provincial sales taxes, making the tax on goods about 15 percent.
While ruling out raising the GST, Finance Minister John Manley said there's a possibility of some other type of tax increase.
Senate committee chairman Michael Kirby said the insurance premium is the preferred method. It would be based on income, so low-income earners would pay as little as 50 cents a day, while those in the highest tax bracket would pay $4 daily.
The report also recommends there be maximum waiting limits for health services or having patients treated elsewhere, including the United States, at government expense. It recommends expanding Medicare to include protection against high prescription drug costs.
A home-care program for recovering patients to be funded equally with the provinces was recommended along with the federal government making a "substantial contribution" to cover costs of palliative home care for the dying.
A federal commission report on the future of health care is to be released this month.
The commission, headed by former Saskatchewan premier Roy Romanow, is expected to recommend billions of dollars more for Medicare.
The successor to Prime Minister Jean Chretien will be selected by the Liberal party at a leadership convention Nov. 15, 2003.
Toronto, Ottawa and Vancouver are on the short list to host the convention.
Chretien, 68, has announced he plans to retire early in 2004.
The front-runner to succeed Chretien is former Finance Minister Paul Martin.
-- Lawrence MacAulay resigned as solicitor-general over conflict-of-interest allegations. The Prince Edward Island Cabinet member was found to have violated guidelines by arranging for government projects and loans for relatives and friends.
-- Families of four Canadian soldiers killed and eight wounded in Afghanistan say a high-profile event to help pay the legal bills of U.S. pilots responsible for the accidental bombing demeans the tragedy. They criticized a lavish reception at the mansion of Illinois Gov. George Ryan as trivializing what happened in April.
-- John McCallum, Canada's defense minister, wants his Liberal government to spend more on the military. He said Canada should be contributing more toward the defense of North America and the free world. The Canadian Forces are demoralized and financially wounded, he said.
Canada's dollar remains higher at 63.74 cents U.S. while a U.S. dollar returns $1.5688 Canadian before bank exchange fees.
There is no change in the Bank of Canada key interest rate of 2.75 percent or the prime-lending rate of 4.5 percent.
The Toronto exchange index was higher Friday at 6,329 points while the Canadian Venture Exchange was lower at 901 points.
Lotto 6-49: (Wednesday) 7, 11, 24, 29, 32 and 36; bonus 42. (Oct. 19) 10, 14, 20, 28, 32 and 40; bonus 33.
-- Police are winding down the extensive search started in April at a farm in suburban Vancouver in their investigation into the disappearance of 63 women. Pig farmer Robert Pickton, 52, faces 15 counts of first-degree murder in the largest investigation of serial killings in Canadian history. The women, many of them drug-addicted sex-trade workers, have disappeared since 1978.
-- Manitoba's Justice Department wants a review into allegations that Winnipeg's police chief interfered with investigations. Jack Ewatski is accused of meddling in investigations involving police officers accused of crimes. He suggested the allegations are nothing more than an internal dispute over how the police service handles investigations.