Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre’s proposed summer tax break was voted down in the House of Commons by the Liberals.
The motion was defeated in a 202 to 116 vote on Monday.
“Canadians deserve relief. But today, the Liberal-NDP coalition refused to give Canadians the summer break they need,” said the Conservatives in a press release.
“This was clear after they voted against a Common Sense Conservative motion that would’ve axed the carbon tax, the federal fuel tax, and GST on gasoline and diesel between Victoria Day and Labour Day so families can afford a simple summer vacation.”
Poilievre announced the proposed legislation last month, requesting that the Trudeau government suspend all federal gas taxes to give Canadians a “summer break” from inflation.
“Give Canadians a fuel tax holiday of 35 cents a litre from Victoria Day all the way to Labour Day,” said Poilievre, while speaking at a gas station in Vancouver last month. “If they do go on a family vacation, they’re forced to pay $2 a litre here in British Columbia, and it’s not much better anywhere else.”
The Conservatives estimated that Canadian families would save around $670 on average over the suggested suspension period.
“The vast majority of Canadians are struggling just to eat, heat and house themselves, a vacation is not even in the cards,” said Poilievre in a press release on May 17. “Justin Trudeau may be able to fly off to a luxury resort for a $230,000 taxpayer-funded vacation, but most Canadians are having to scale back or cancel their road trips after Trudeau’s carbon tax made fuel and groceries unaffordable.”
“Canadians deserve relief, not more taxes. Families should be able to afford a simple road trip.”
Some provinces have already temporarily removed provincial gas taxes to alleviate financial stress, a pause set to expire at the end of June but has since been extended until at least the end of the summer.
Ontario announced it would be extending the pause until the end of this year in its latest budget and Manitoba extended its gas tax cut until the end of September.
Alberta reinstated its gas tax in full last month, however, the province reserves the right to reduce it or remove it entirely if the price of a barrel of oil surpasses a certain threshold.
B.C. has had its own carbon pricing system in place since 2008.
The Saskatchewan government officially refused to send Ottawa federal carbon levy funds from natural gas in January, promising taxpayers some financial relief.
“Not only is Trudeau not providing Canadians with relief, but he’s also actively making their lives more expensive. Trudeau recently hiked the carbon tax by 23 percent, as part of his plan to quadruple this tax over the next six years,” continued the press release.
“This has made everything more expensive at the worst possible time. And as a direct result of Trudeau’s taxes, gas prices have surged by more than 50 percent since he became Prime Minister.”
