Claims by the Trudeau government that the carbon tax would see Canadians get more back in rebates than they paid into the program are false, according to Canada’s federal budget watchdog.
As reported by Blacklock’s Reporter, the Parliamentary Budget Office’s (PBO) latest report stated that “most households will see a net loss” as a result of the carbon tax rebate scheme.
By 2030, these net losses would mean thousands in additional taxes a year for some households.
As recently as yesterday at the Commons environment committee, Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault spread the untrue claim that most Canadians got more money back from the carbon tax program than they paid into it.
“As you know according to the Parliamentary Budget Officer eight out of ten households are better off with carbon pricing,” said Guilbeault. “It is true the richest among us in Canada do not benefit from rebates but eight out of ten households are better off.”
Guilbeault’s claim is contrary to what budget analysts reported when they stated that the carbon tax had a “negative economic impact” for taxpayers.
“When the economic impact is combined with the fiscal impact, that is the carbon levy and related GST paid less the rebate received, the net carbon cost increases for all households reflecting the overall negative economic impact of the federal carbon levy,” wrote the PBO.
“Most households in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario will see a net loss resulting from federal carbon pricing. That is, the costs they face including the federal carbon levy, higher GST and lower incomes will exceed the Climate Action Incentive rebate they receive.”
In 2019, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also campaigned on the claim that the federal carbon tax would put “more money” in the pockets of Canadians.
“Our plan will mean a cleaner environment and more money in their pockets,” Trudeau falsely claimed. “The average citizens of those provinces will be better off with this price on pollution than they would be had there been no price on pollution.”
Not only is the carbon tax making life more expensive, it has also largely failed to reduce Canada’s emissions.
The carbon tax is poised to increase on Apr. 1 as many Canadians are facing record-breaking prices at the gas pumps. The 25% increase to the tax will raise the cost of greenhouse gas emissions from $40 per tonne to $50 per tonne.
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) blasted the federal government over the PBO’s report, emphasizing the watchdog’s finding that Canadian households are losing as much as $845 dollars annually to the carbon tax, even after rebates.
“The carbon tax is bad for families, plain and simple,” said CTF Ontario director Jay Goldberg. “The Trudeau government’s plans will hurt Canadians and hinder economic growth, even though evidence shows carbon taxes don’t lower emissions. It’s clearer than ever before that the federal government needs to scrap its carbon tax.”
