Reaction to Alberta Budget 2015, premier and minister on the defensive

Alberta Premier Jim Prentice, left, carries the budget after Alberta Finance Minister Robin Campbell, right, delivered the 2015 budget in Edmonton, Alta., on Thursday, March 26, 2015. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson)

The provincial budget was unveiled Thursday, and included a lot of new taxes, increased taxes and fees – Premier Jim Prentice said times are tough and everyone needs to pitch in, but critics say the burden isn’t being shared by all.

Budget 2015 included health premiums and hikes to fines and fees, new ‘sin taxes’ and increased income tax for people earning six figures – it’s expected to take an additional $1.5 billion from Albertans.

In all, the projected deficit in the budget was set at $5 billion – the largest deficit in modern history. The provincial government has said the dramatic drop in oil prices is to blame for a revenue shortfall of $7 billion.

The financial plan had some political analysts fired up.

“They’re taxing every bit of your daily life to try to profit on it,” Bob Murray with the Frontier Centre for Public Policy said Friday.

“What they’ve done is they’ve imposed taxpayers with the burden of the financial system, and made life in Alberta less affordable.”

However, Finance Minister Robin Campbell maintained Albertans have some of the lowest taxes in the country.

“I think is what’s important is we still remain the lowest tax jurisdiction in Canada,” Campbell said.

The premier said Albertans with more money were being asked to ‘step up’ and help deal with the province’s financial situation.

“We’ve asked people who can pay a little more to step up and pay a little more,” Prentice said.

However, Murray pointed to decision to not increase corporate taxes.

“They did not equally disperse the taxation burden onto corporations,” Murray said.

That was a move Campbell said the province considered.

“We looked at it, and we had people do studies and, for example, for every 1 percent [increase] we’d see about 9,000 job losses in the province,” Campbell said.

Campbell said the average family of four would pay around $288 more per year in taxes under Budget 2015.

With files from Bill Fortier