Ottawa, ON – Sandra Cobena, Shadow Minister for Treasury Board & The King’s Privy Council, and Luc Berthold, Conservative Deputy House Leader, issued a statement following the Liberals voting down the Conservative motion recognizing the affordability crisis:

“Today, every political party, except for the Liberals, voted in favour of our Conservative motion that would declare what Canadians already know: that we are in an affordability crisis.

“The vote came the same day that the Parliamentary Budget Officer downgraded Canada’s economic outlook, cutting projected economic growth while warning that the Liberal government is failing to meet its own fiscal target. The PBO projects federal debt will continue rising over the coming years while interest costs alone are set to reach $83 billion annually by 2030-31.

“These numbers have direct consequences for Canadians as StatCan reported yesterday that inflation rose to 3.1 per cent in September. The report says that it was driven largely by surging energy costs, with gasoline prices up 27.8 per cent over the last year.

“While global conflicts impact gas prices, Liberal taxes on fuel and gas are putting even more strain on Canadians. We already know from a previous PBO report that taxes like the Clean Fuel Regulations add up to seven cents per litre to the cost of gasoline today and could add as much as 17 cents per litre by 2030. The same analysis estimates these taxes cost between $384 and $1,157 annually by 2030, depending on the province. 

“No wonder Dan McTeague, President of Canadians for Affordable Energy, called on the Prime Minister to ‘immediately remove all taxes on fuel and repeal the regulations that are driving up prices.’ 

“Because when truckers, farmers and families pay more for fuel, those costs ripple through the entire economy. The results speak for themselves as nearly 44 percent of Canadians are $200 away from insolvency and last year saw the highest amount of consumer insolvencies since 2009.

“Conservatives called on Mr. Carney and the Liberal government to support our motion for the House to recognize that Canada is in an affordability crisis. But instead, their vote signals that we are not.

“Despite the motion being defeated, Conservatives will not give up. That is why we will continue to call on the government to extend the federal fuel tax holiday until Canada Day 2027, remove the GST from gas and diesel, scrap the industrial carbon tax and eliminate the costly Clean Fuel Regulations that add to the price Canadians pay every time they fill up.

“Canadians need relief and Conservatives will fight to save Canadians their money, save jobs, reduce immigration and put Canadians first.”