British Columbians support ways to mitigate the impact of the HST on the province's restaurant and food services sector, according to a new poll by the B.C. Restaurants and Foodservices Association.
The survey found 63% of British Columbians strongly oppose the HST, 64% favour exempting food in restaurants if HST proceeds and 64% of respondents favour gradual implementation of the HST.
The desire to exempt the HST on restaurants was felt strongest on Vancouver Island (73%) followed by respondents in the Interior (69%) and the Lower Mainland (60%).
The survey also found that 81% agree it's not fair to implement a tax that will hurt some workers and businesses more than others without doing something to help those feeling the greatest impact.
A CRFA study suggested the increase in sales tax from 5% to 12% will result in an annual loss in B.C. sales of $750 million, or nearly $50,000 a year for the average restaurant in the province.
Independent restaurants would bear the majority of the losses since 69% of restaurants in B.C. are independently owned, while 31% are chain restaurants.
Ian Tostenson, president and CEO of the B.C. Restaurant and Foodservices Association said the negative effects of the HST on the sector would have a cascading effect on other food sectors in the province from suppliers and vendors to their employees and farmers.
He said the industry is worried the HST will result in a similar experience in 1991 when B.C.'s restaurants saw a 9.5% decline in sales after the implementation of the GST. The CRFA study said the bulk of the losses were the result of the GST.
"We don't feel the HST is necessarily bad. Our issue is a transition one. Given the declines in the industry as a result of the recession, we know that a lot of restaurants are literally going month to month, so they can't absorb another decrease in sales."