Conservatives Call for Federal Gas Tax Relief Through Year-End

Mr. Speaker, I have risen today to address our Conservative proposal to eliminate all federal gas taxes for the rest of the year, saving families roughly $0.25 a litre, $20 per fill-up, and $1,200 between now and Christmas.

But before I address that, let me just address that this Prime Minister has manufactured a costly majority that Canadians rejected in the last election.

He did it through dirty backroom deals against the interests of the people, with the help of politicians who betrayed their voters and their citizens.

Liberals wanted a majority. Well, absolute power comes with absolute responsibility.

They will actually have to get things done. They will have to do so without blaming others, and they will have to start now.

So far, that has not been the case.

Here are the results of this Prime Minister.

He has doubled the deficit, given Canada the worst food inflation in the G7, the worst household debt in the G7, the only shrinking economy in the G7, the worst housing costs in the G7.

No pipelines are approved. No changes to the criminal code are approved.

He has not replaced the carbon tax, but rather he has brought in a new carbon tax that is while currently lower, will rise higher, and is much broader.

He promised to cut red tape and remove barriers to building.

Well, he has not removed a single Trudeau-era anti-development law, but stacked new laws on top of old ones.

He has not removed a single government agency. He has created 12 new ones.

He said that we were facing an existential crisis that required immediate action at unimaginable speeds,

but after Parliament in just five days rushed through massive unprecedented legal powers for him to get things approved,

he has not used those powers to approve a single solitary project of any kind almost a year later. Nothing.

Speaking of projects, what about pipelines, the famous pipeline to the Pacific, the great symbol of our energy sovereignty?

After a year of this Liberal Prime Minister promising unprecedented speeds, that project has no route, no permit, no builder,

no timeline to start, and no end date to be completed.

Further, the only company that could potentially build at Enbridge has said that it is impossible to fill the pipeline

because the taxes and anti-production laws that the government has kept in place mean there will not be enough oil to run through it.

Finally, the Prime Minister has added another condition, that the Alberta people spend $20 billion on a carbon capture project

that will lose money every year into eternity, a project that has never been done anywhere in the world,

that has no builder, no permit, no start date, no timeline. The promise is a phantom, another illusion.

The same is true with taxes. The federal government collects $0.25 a litre on gas and diesel.

Today the Prime Minister announced he will offer only a fraction of that back to overtaxed customers.

In other words, he will only be suspending a third of the federal taxes for a third of the year.

That is not good enough. Canadians cannot afford to gas their tanks.

We want all gas taxes eliminated for the rest of the year to save Canadian families $1,200.

We will continue this fight. We know that the government has the money.

They are getting $5 billion in extra revenues from the fact that the oil companies are making more profits

and therefore paying more tax automatically and organically.

That money should go back into the pockets of consumers, not into the coffers of government.

We want this country to be affordable so that Canadians can fill their tanks,

fill their grocery carts, fill their fridges, and fill their stomachs without emptying their bank accounts.

The Liberals would ask Canadians to give up on this expectation, to lower their plans, and to accept less.

We do not accept less. Canadians might be discouraged right now because of the current political situation,

but let us say this. Canadians should not give up.

We will continue the fight for you, for you to have affordable homes, affordable food, and affordable fuel.

We will fight for you to have safe streets. We will fight for you to have powerful paycheques and strong jobs.

We will fight for our soldiers and law enforcement who keep us safe.

I will continue to lead that fight in this House, across this country, and in the next election

when we as Conservatives will work to restore the country that we all know and love.