The House of Commons on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed legislation enabling the provinces to harmonize their sales taxes with the federal GST, clearing the way for Ontario and British Columbia to implement the HST this summer.

The federal HST bill passed by a vote of 253-37. Only the NDP opposed the legislation.

Both Ontario and B.C. plan to combine their provincial sales taxes with the federal goods and services tax on July 1.

Economists estimate that combining the tax will save businesses in Ontario billions, because firms will no longer have to pay tax on inputs such as materials and supplies. But the tax has outraged some consumers, who will see a rise in the amount of tax they pay on items such as gasoline in Ontario, and phone and cable bills in B.C.

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