British Columbia’s Opposition leader is promising to immediately cut the provincial carbon tax on all fuels and stop planned future increases if elected to form government next year.
BC United Leader Kevin Falcon says his party would give motorists a break by eliminating the provincial fuel tax, currently at about 15 cents per litre on gasoline and diesel, and remove the carbon tax on all home-heating fuels.
The BC United position comes after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a temporary exemption for the federal carbon tax on home heating oil, but that doesn’t apply to British Columbia because the province has its own carbon tax.
Falcon says BC United would also remove the carbon tax on farm fuel to cut operational costs for farmers and lower grocery costs for consumers.
He estimates his proposed cuts would have an impact on provincial revenues of almost $5 billion over three years, which is about two per cent of the B.C. budget.
During question period in the legislature, Premier David Eby called Falcon a “weather vane,” for changing his previous carbon tax support in favour of shifting federal political winds.
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