NDP keeps carbon tax debate alive in the House with motion calling for home heating GST relief
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and his party kept the carbon pricing debate alive in the House of Commons Tuesday by advancing a motion calling for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to permanently remove the GST off all forms of home heating.
It's an affordability-focused push the New Democrats have been making for months, but amid the current political firestorm the Liberals are facing over their recent carbon tax carve-out for home heating oil and doubling of the rural rebate top-up, attention on the issue has gained new traction.
Similar to Monday's failed Conservative motion calling for the three-year pause on the carbon price collected from home heating oil to be expanded to all forms of home heating, Singh's proposal is non-binding, meaning even if it passes, it won't force the government to act.
Specifically, the NDP things:
- Removing the GST from all forms of home heating;
- Making eco-energy retrofits and heat pumps free and easy to access for low-income and middle-class Canadians, regardless of energy source; and
- Financing these projects by putting in place a tax on the excess profits of big oil and gas corporations.
"Canadians continue to struggle with dramatic increases to the cost of living while Canada鈥檚 biggest corporations, including oil and gas corporations, post record profits," reads the motion in-part, sponsored by B.C. NDP MP Taylor Bachrach.
"[And] federal government programs aimed at supporting energy-efficient retrofits such as heat pumps are hard to access, especially for low-income Canadians 鈥 effective climate action must also address the very real affordability concerns of ordinary Canadians."
While the motion was debated for the majority of the sitting day Tuesday, it won't come to a vote until later in the week. Early indications are that it may be unlikely that the Conservative caucus will be reciprocating the support the NDP lent to their latest carbon tax motion.
During debate in the House on Tuesday, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre accused the New Democrats of performing "yet another flip-flop."
"Originally they wanted to quadruple the tax. Yesterday, they said they wanted to pause the tax. And today they won't take a position because they have omitted mention of the prime minister's quadrupling of the tax in to the motion," Poilievre said, before unsuccessfully trying to tack on an amendment to the motion.
"Now the question is, what are the Liberals and Conservatives going to do tomorrow? If the Conservatives, if Pierre Poilievre is serious about giving people a break, then he will support this motion tomorrow. He'll vote in favor of it. If he doesn't vote in favor of it, it'll show two things," Singh told reporters Tuesday.
"One, that the corporate controlled-Conservatives are too interested in protecting the profits of big oil and gas to support this motion, or two, they're so opposed to helping people do the right thing鈥 that they're voting against a plan to help people lower their costs and fight the climate crisis."
When pressed by CTV鈥檚 Power Play host Vassy Kapelos later on Tuesday, Singh would not say how much money the measure would save the average Canadian household.
In a back-and-forth kicking off question period earlier in the day, Trudeau called out Poilievre for his 鈥渄ivisive rhetoric鈥 on the issue, and accused the Conservatives of failing to recognize that climate change is real.
鈥淭hese are things that we've done right across the country. Only the Conservatives would think that taking serious action on climate change and supporting Canadians right across the country with affordability measures would be divisive,鈥 he said.
The Senate also voted Tuesday to advance Bill C-234 鈥 a private member鈥檚 bill by Conservative MP Ben Lobb 鈥 seeking further exemptions in the carbon price for certain fuels used in farming.
Namely, the bill would make changes to the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act to include natural gas and propane as qualifying farming fuels exempt from the carbon tax.
If the Senate passes it, the bill would also scrap the carbon price to heat and cool buildings used for raising livestock or growing crops, as well as on grain drying and feed preparation.
But senators have been debating in recent weeks whether to amend the bill and continue charging the fuel price on natural gas and propane for heating and cooling of barns and greenhouses, a cost that farmers have said is untenable and unfair.
On Tuesday evening, the Senate voted to reject the proposed amendment and proceed to third reading of the bill, unamended, at its next sitting.
Farmers, experts, and senators have said the bill creates a carve-out in the carbon tax for those who should have had an exemption from the beginning.
鈥淚t鈥檚 the fairness that strikes me about this bill over and over again,鈥 said Sen. Pat Duncan during debate in the upper chamber last week. 鈥淚t鈥檚 fair to include the farmers who were left out and to correct this oversight.鈥
鈥淟et鈥檚 remember that natural gas and propane are the cleanest burning fuels,鈥 Duncan also said. 鈥淲ill allowing this rebate and passing Bill C-234 make a tremendous difference to Canada reaching the climate change goals? I don鈥檛 think so. It will correct an oversight and be fair to all concerned.鈥
since 2022 and passed the House in March 2023. It still needs to clear third reading before becoming law.
IN DEPTH
Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has pulled his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement that had been helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberals in power.
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government鈥檚 three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party鈥檚 popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn鈥檛 be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Environmental racism': First Nations leaders claim cancer-causing contamination was covered up
The people of Fort Chipewyan believe the federal government believe the federal government knew its water was contaminated and hid the issue for years. Now the chief of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation is leading the call for immediate action.
Death toll from Hurricane Helene rises to 227 as grim task of recovering bodies continues
The death toll from Hurricane Helene inched up to 227 on Saturday as the grim task of recovering bodies continued more than a week after the monster storm ravaged the Southeast and killed people in six states.
A driver suffered only minor injuries after going airborne in a residential neighbourhood in Maple Ridge, B.C., on Friday, the car eventually landing on its roof in someone鈥檚 backyard.
Donald Trump, Elon Musk attend rally at same Pennsylvania grounds where gunman tried to assassinate Trump
Donald Trump returned on Saturday to the Pennsylvania fairgrounds where he was nearly assassinated in July, holding a sprawling rally with thousands of supporters in a critical swing state Trump hopes to return to his column in November's election.
Tax rebate: Canadians with low to modest incomes to receive payment
Canadians who are eligible for a GST/HST tax credit can expect their final payment of the year on Friday.
The owners of a North York condominium say they are facing a $70,000 special assessment to fix their building's parking garage. '$70,000 is a lot of money. It makes me very nervous and stressed out of nowhere for this huge debt to come in,' said Ligeng Guo.
Police released the identities of the mother and daughter who were killed after a fire tore through a 160-year-old building in Old Montreal on Friday.
Frequent drinking of fizzy beverages and fruit juice are linked to an increased risk of stroke: research
New data raises questions about the drinks people consume and the potential risks associated with them, according to researchers at Galway University in Ireland, in partnership with Hamilton鈥檚 McMaster University.
The sentencing of the man who pleaded guilty in the deadly hit-and-run in Kitsilano two years ago began on Friday.
Local Spotlight
Chantal Kreviazuk is set to return to Winnipeg to mark a major milestone in her illustrious musical career.
From the beaches of Cannes to the bustling streets of New York City, a new film by a trio of Manitoba directors has toured the international film festival circuit to much pomp and circumstance.
A husband and wife have been on the road trip of a lifetime and have decided to stop in Saskatchewan for the winter.
The grave of a previously unknown Canadian soldier has been identified as a man from Hayfield, Man. who fought in the First World War.
A group of classic car enthusiasts donated hundreds of blankets to nursing homes in Nova Scotia.
Moving into the second week of October, the eastern half of Canada can expect some brisker fall air to break down from the north
What does New Westminster's t蓹m蓹sew虛tx史 Aquatic and Community Centre have in common with a historic 68,000-seat stadium in Beijing, an NFL stadium and the aquatics venue for the Paris Olympics? They've all been named among the world's most beautiful sports venues for 2024.
The last living member of the legendary Vancouver Asahi baseball team, Kaye Kaminishi, died on Saturday, Sept. 28, surrounded by family. He was 102 years old.
New data from Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley shows a surge in supply and drop in demand in the region's historically hot real estate market.