Conservative Motion to Cancel ‘Second Carbon Tax’ Fails in House of Commons

A woman fills up her car with gas in this file photo. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press)

A motion introduced by the opposition to cancel the second federal carbon tax, also known as the Clean Fuel Standard, failed in the House of Commons on June 5.

The Conservative motion said that the first carbon tax would add 41 cents to a litre of gas, while the Clean Fuel Standard—which they referred to as a second carbon tax—would add another 20 cents. The motion said this extra 61 cents per litre of gas would make life more expensive for Canadians.

The motion failed, receiving 115 “yeas” to 209 “nays.”

During a press conference held before the vote, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said if the Liberal government did not agree to balance the budget to lower interest rates and agree to no new carbon taxes, his party would use “all procedural tools at our disposal” to block the federal budget from passing.

Poilievre said while it was not “realistic” to ask the Liberals to completely remove the federal carbon tax, he said asking Ottawa to cancel any planned increases to the tax in the near future was a “reasonable” compromise.

“If the government does not meet these demands, we will use all procedural tools at our disposal to block the budget from passing, including 900 amendments, lengthy speeches and other procedural tools that are in our toolkit,” he said.

On April 1, the federal carbon tax increased from $50 to $65 a tonne, which according to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation will increase the price for consumers filling their gas tanks from 11.05 cents to 14.31 cents per litre. The carbon tax is set to increase by $15 every year until 2030, at which time it will cost $170 per tonne.

The federal government is also developing a Clean Fuel Standard, which mandates that if fuel companies fail to reduce the carbon intensity of the fuels they produce, they will pay for credits. The associated costs will be passed down to consumers, leading many to refer to the Clean Fuel Standard as a second carbon tax.

According to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, the federal government’s carbon tax will cost the average Canadian family up to $710 in 2023, even after rebates. When the Clean Fuel Standard is fully implemented in 2030, that amount will increase to $1,160.

The Parliamentary Budget Officer also said the Clean Fuel Standard is regressive, meaning it will disproportionately impact lower-income Canadians. The tax will mean that by 2030, lower-income households will pay an extra 0.062 percent of their disposable income, while higher-income families will pay 0.035 percent.