Lots have been written on the middle class. Many governments around the world target the middle class as part of helping the middle class. The problem is that many governments are too busy focusing on policies that do little in terms either helping the environment or supporting the middle class.

1. WHY IS MIDDLECLASS
UNDER PRESSURE?
BY: PAUL YOUNG CPA, CGA
DATE: MARCH 11, 2017

2. AGENDA
• GDP Growth
• Job/Employment
• Middle class / World
• Liberal Party Policies/Trudeau
• Global Emissions/Carbon Pricing

3. GDP FORECAST
Source – Scotiabank – Mach 7, 2017
Comments:
• Job creation
• Majority of the jobs the past few years have been
part-time
(https://www.slideshare.net/paulyoungcga/2017-
february-employment-canada-jobless-rate-drops-
to-66-as-canada-added-15000-jobs-in-february-
2017
• Middle class has been shrinking for years
• Forbes said it best “Canada cut taxes and does a
much better job of sharing the wealth through
equalization payments -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOl37VcG89c
• Wage growth has been about 1%/year for the
past 10+ years. Wages are not keeping pace with
either inflation or rise in housing prices
• Hard to compare countries due to different taxation
structures
• Europe emphasizes VAT (15% to 20% range)
• North American (personal and corporate taxes)
• Sluggish growth since 2000
• Aging populations in mature economies
• Lower demand world-wide (China economy has
cooled down)

4. EMPLOYMENT
Stats – Canada – March 10, 2017
Wages
• Goods Producing Wages/Weekly $1,438 or $75,000 (year) –
lost 85,000 jobs
• Service Sector Wages/Weekly $1,055 or $55,000
• Bulk of new jobs are part-time/job churning
• 30% of the jobs created in the service sector were
government related
Middle class
• No new taxes
• Hikes to tax rates (personal and payroll taxes)
• No removal of tax credits
• No Carbon taxes
• New private sector investment
• Development of resources
• Advance manufacturing
• Technology (Clean Tech, Analytics, cybersecurity,
eCommerce, cloud, export farming, robotics and drones)
• Revamping housing rules
• Emphasis on infrastructure that both move goods to
market as well as transportation

5. MIDDLE CLASS 2020
Source – Brookings Institute – March 12, 2017

6. LIBERAL PARTY OF CANADA / JUSTIN TRUDEAU
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUZBt_qq3WY
Liberal Plan
• Clean tech is $12B business or about 3.5% of the total
goods producing sector
• It takes years to commercialized clean tech
• SDTC has been around since early 2000s and has
help companies
• Lack of access to capital is hurting startups
• Canada lacks the capacity to get natural resources to
market
• Manufacturing and Resources compete for global capital
• Liberals are moving to carbon tax as well as other
taxes
• Australia pull the tax as it did nothing for
emissions but hurt the economy
• Canada’s economy is similar to Australia
• More red tape/regulations
• Only small portion of $120B infrastructure is going to
support exports
• For each $1B of exports there is 5,500 jobs
• Goods producing sector lost close to 80K jobs since
the liberals tool office

7. GLOBAL EMISSIONS
Who in the top four countries have
implemented carbon tax?
How is Canada carbon tax going to impact
the overall emissions?
Canada middle class is already under
pressure as such how is new carbon
tax going to make their lives better?

8. SUMMARY
• It is not one policy that supports the middle class, but many policies
• Taxes like carbon tax and consumption taxes hurt the middle class more as those taxes are paid with
after tax income. More tax in the cost of products less money for big ticket purchases. It is consumer
consumption that drives the economy.
• Housing market has many issues which are leading to affordability when it comes to first-time home
buyers.
• Liberals talk balance approach to environment and development of resources. The liberals feel carbon
tax will create the balance when it has been a failure
CBC – December 7, 2016