​Canadians and their governments seem to have forgotten that the more you learn, the more you earn 

‘The No. 1 problem in today’s generation and economy is the lack of financial literacy’Published Feb 11, 2025  •  Last updated 39 minutes ago  •  5 minute read Join the conversation Good examples in government spending, tax and economic policies would go a long way to paving the path for Canadians to also improve their financial literacy. Photo by Designer491/Postmedia filesReviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page.Many Canadians have tax situations that are straightforward, but their finances can become complex in a hurry if they become financially successful, have international connections or interests, are involved in estate planning or enter the world of entrepreneurship.Article contentArticle contentNotwithstanding, it’s been my experience that the level of financial literacy for most Canadians is extremely weak at all levels of complexity. Having a basic level of financial literacy is a must to navigate the complex society we live in, set yourself up for an eventual and comfortable retirement, and make better and informed decisions when voting for and choosing our country’s elected leaders.Advertisement 2Story continues belowThis advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. View more offersArticle contentI’m convinced that better choices at the ballot box would be made across the board — federal, provincial and municipal — with improved financial literacy.I recently spoke at a professional event in Kelowna, B.C. The night before, I went down to the bar in my hotel to get a drink to bring up to my room. As I waited, I was standing next to a couple of barflies. One of them was rather young and the other was older.The younger one said, “I think when your income and wealth is $50 million or more, the tax rate should be 100 per cent. I mean, $50 million sounds like a good number … no one will be able to spend that amount in their lifetime.” The older fellow responded, “I agree, but I think that 100 per cent tax rate should be restricted to capital gains.” The younger one agreed to that idea.I found myself very torn, as I often do in situations such as these, as to whether I should try to help these fellows make sense of their nonsensical opinions. One of my missions in life is to plant acorns in the area of tax and financial literacy. Such acorns can grow into the proverbial mighty oak trees.In this case, I walked away without saying a word. In hindsight, perhaps I should have chimed in to help them improve their tax and financial literacy. However, piercing the bubble of ideology is extremely challenging. It’s really only effective if a partisan-driven person has a sound education in financial literacy and, more importantly, they are open to new ideas. Many do not. It’s much easier to live in an echo chamber and hope that things work out and your beliefs get