Motorists are bracing themselves for a huge hike at the pumps. Ontario and Quebec will see a 14 cent per litre increase overnight Thursday April 18th. This will push the price per litre up to $1.79 across Ontario, the highest level seen since Aug. 2, 2022. In Quebec, the price per litre is expected to climb to $1.88.
Last month, Dan McTeague, president of Canadians for Affordable Energy who also runs GasWizard, a website that tracks fuel prices, warned that with the switchover to summer blended gas, as well as the carbon tax increase and the rising price of oil, the cost of gas will stay elevated this spring and summer. The price of gas is expected to cool in September, but come January, it should rise again once a second carbon tax hits the pumps.
Today, The Canadian Taxpayers Federation called on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to scrap the carbon tax.
“Ontarians are barely making ends meet and the Trudeau government’s carbon tax is making life more expensive for hardworking taxpayers,” said CTF Ontario Director Jay Goldberg. “It’s time for the feds to recognize that punishing taxpayers for driving to work and bringing the kids to school is breaking family budgets. The carbon tax must go.”
If the Trudeau government scrapped its carbon tax, Ontario drivers would save 17.6 cents per litre at the pumps, which works out to about $13.20 when filling up a minivan.
“The amount of money taxpayers would save at the pump without the carbon tax isn’t chump change,” said Goldberg. “It’s $13 per fill-up and could save Ontario families hundreds of dollars over the course of a full year.”
The carbon tax costs average Ontario families $627 per year, even after accounting for rebates, according to the Parliamentary Budget Officer.
In March, the Government of Ontario announced that it was extending a temporary tax cut intended to help drivers save money at gas pumps. The cut, which first went into effect in July 2022, reduces the gasoline tax by 5.7 cents per litre and the diesel fuel tax by 5.3 cents per litre. It was scheduled to expire on June 30. Premier Doug Ford confirmed that the tax break will remain in place until the end of the year. The province estimates these tax breaks have saved households an annual average of $320 since they were introduced.
Canada’s annual inflation rate rose to 2.9 per cent in March on higher gasoline prices, according to Statistics Canada. Gasoline prices climbed 4.5 per cent in March after a 0.8 per cent rise in February, mainly due to tensions in the Middle East leading to soaring crude oil prices globally.
In yesterday’s federal budget, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government announced that small and medium-sized businesses are set to receive billions of dollars in carbon price rebates. The federal budget says five years of rebates worth $2.5 billion will be sent out as the Liberals continue to stand by their carbon pricing system despite political pressure. More than 600,000 businesses can expect to receive the money as a refundable tax credit later this year as long as their 2023 tax return is filed by mid-July. The government is also announcing a tax credit to attract companies investing in Canada’s electric-vehicle supply chain.
On April 1, 2024, the federal carbon tax increased from $65 per tonne to $80 per tonne, costing drivers an extra 3.3 cents per litre at the pump. This surcharge affects dozens of fuel sources that produce greenhouse gas emissions, including propane and natural gas. The carbon tax, which is applied to fossil fuel purchases, is intended to encourage Canadians to reduce their consumption of polluting fuels.
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