Banff Fest 2016 commentary: Rigid, old, political rhetoric may mean playing field remains uneven

By Bill Roberts

BANFF – Okay, how do you know you've got a great tax accountant? Well, it's obvious – she's got a loophole named after her!Yup, the title "Digital Content Taxation: Levelling the Playing Field with Foreign Competition" didn't announce well as a barn-burning session. However, I wasn't expecting jokes about tax lawyers deducting ExLax as a moving expense either.There was a principle involved.Bernard Lord, president and CEO of the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (and former Premier of New Brunswick), has a bee in his bonnet: Foreign digital content providers are not required to register and collect Canadian GST/HST, and thus have...