Poilievre still won't say if he'll scrap government's capital gains tax hike

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre was noncommittal Thursday when asked what a government led by him would do with Ottawa's proposed changes to the capital gains tax.

Poilievre has portrayed himself as an anti-tax crusader, centring his leadership on a promise to dismantle the Liberal government's carbon tax — and he pitched a summer tax holiday from that levy Thursday to give drivers a break.

He's said a future Conservative government will do away with the annual tax hike on alcohol. He also has suggested there could be an income tax cut if he's elected.

But Poilievre has been reluctant to stake out a clear position on capital gains tax changes that were first pitched in Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland's April budget.

«There is no such increase. They've pulled that out of the budget,» Poilievre said Thursday when asked if he supports raising the capital gains inclusion rate from one-half to two-thirds for all corporations and for individuals who claim a gain of more than $250,000.

Poilievre has taken similar positions when asked about other Liberal programs like dental care, pharmacare and national child care; he's either said they don't really exist or they're so poorly managed that he can't comment on what he'd do with them when he takes office.

The Liberal government did separate the capital gains tax change from its budget implementation legislation and has promised to instead introduce a separate bill on the matter in the House of Commons at a later date. That's expected to happen before Parliament rises for its summer break at the end of next month.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday the tax will take effect on June 25, as promised in the budget.

The change was detailed in the budget's tax annex and the