Taxes To Go Up January 1st.

If you're working, more money will be taken out of your pay cheque for employment insurance and Canada Pension in the new year. The increase will amount to 323 dollars a year for employees and employers.

The Atlantic Director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, Kevin Lacey calls that one of the single largest increases since 2002 and tells CHSJ News, the Harper Government claims the programme is now underfunded but there were actually huge surpluses in years gone by but the federal governments of the day managed to spend that money.

Lacey likens any increase in payroll taxes to a job killer at a time when the provincial economy is in such a fragile state.

Mixed Income Housing Is Key To Ending Poverty

Improvements on housing and slight declines in the rate for seniors and kids sound good when it comes to eradicating poverty in Saint John. But, Human Development Council Executive Director Randy Hatfield tells CHSJ News says there is still a lot of work ahead in 2012 and beyond.

He favours mixed income housing like the St. Andrew the Abbey project and the new announcement for Churchill Boulevard.

He says the biggest hurdle in housing is the price adding the current provincial and federal governments housing agreements in place are not as generous as they need to be in order to prompt private sector involvement.

As for a tiny dip in the numbers for child and senior poverty, Hatfield says you have to be very careful with stats on poverty when the numbers relate to money because of other factors at play including education and literacy.

Most New Year Resolutions Focus On Health

A new survey finds past failures are not stopping Canadians from making New Year’s resolutions. The survey for Sun Life Financial finds almost eight-in-ten Canadians are making resolutions for 2012.

Sun Life Financial Senior Vice-President Kevin Strain says the vast majority are focusing on their health, such as losing weight or eating better.  

But Strain adds only 25 percent of people have kept their resolutions in the past.
 

The Ipsos survey also found almost one-third of Canadians have resolved to pay down debt in 2012.

Regular Self-Serve Goes Up

Gas prices taking a small jump at the pumps today -- regular self serve has gone up to $1.25 at litre, although most stations are selling it for $1.22 a litre.

Diesel also going up to $1.35 a litre but most places sell it for a few cents lower.

Meanwhile, furnace oil taking a slight bump to $1.14 a litre while propane going down a few cents to $1.10 a litre.