New Brunswickers are in need of better solutions to offset the rising cost of living, and particularly fuel, according to a member of the Green Party of New Brunswick.
In an interview with Global News, Kent North MLA Kevin Arseneau said while people across the government are feeling the pinch, there hasn’t been meaningful conversations around solutions.
“We have a government that still refuses to … acknowledge that some people are having a hard time. And so it’s very worrisome the lack of action on this issue,” Arseneau said.
As of Friday afternoon, the maximum price of gas in New Brunswick sat at just over $2.02, and the most drivers could pay for diesel was about $2.08.
In its latest update, Statistics Canada indicated the Consumer Price Index for New Brunswick had increased by 8.8 per cent compared to the same period last year. For comparison, this tied the province with Nova Scotia for the second-largest increase, only trailing Prince Edward Island.
“We can’t control inflation provincially, but we definitely can control the help that is given to New Brunswickers,” Arseneau said.
In June, the provincial government unveiled $20 million in financial relief for low-income families, individuals and seniors to weather the financial strain.
However, the Emergency Food and Fuel Benefit only provided a one-time payment of a maximum of $450.
The province said at the time the program was announced, over 75,000 residents would be eligible.
Preston Muise, a Saint John resident, said Friday, while filling up his fuel tank, prices are “ridiculous,” stating there should be more done to ease the pain.
“Cut some of the taxes that are on it. You know, we’re getting taxed to death on the fuel, it’s ridiculous — every day just to drive. You tend to walk more than drive now — you can’t afford to drive,” Muise remarked.
Temporarily renouncing the HST on gas is among the ideas proposed by Arseneau that can be implemented to provide immediate relief.
However, he stated there must also be long-term solutions to avoid falling back into a similar situation.
Recently, leaders of provincial Green parties issued a call for a windfall profits tax on oil and gas companies to redistribute the funds directly to Canadians.
“What Premier Higgs has to do is … go talk to our federal counterparts about (it) and so make that a priority. But right now, he doesn’t seem to want to make that a priority, and so it’s kind of on the backbench,” Arseneau noted.
Arseneau claimed the provincial government has failed to acknowledge rising costs are a high-pressure problem for New Brunswickers, and attempted solutions have left many members of the working class in a pinch.
Comments