REGINA — In the wake of news that Prime Minister Mark Carney is temporarily suspending the excise tax, the NDP tried and failed again to remove the provincial 15-cent-a-litre fuel tax.
Opposition finance critic Trent Wotherspoon attempted to move an emergency motion in the Assembly to temporarily suspend the provincial fuel tax. But as has been the case for most of the NDP’s emergency motions this term, it failed to receive the required unanimous consent to make it into debate, as government members said no.
The NDP have frequently called for the fuel tax’s removal over the past several months and years, citing affordability concerns. But the government has been steadfast in maintaining it, citing the need for the revenue for highway maintenance.
Following this latest failure to sway the government, Wotherspoon voiced his dismay to reporters outside the Assembly chamber.
“Just real disappointed once again to see the Sask Party government fail to support a motion to cut the gas tax for Saskatchewan people. This is a time where the price of fuel is gone sky high for families, farms and businesses,” said Wotherspoon.
“At the same time the province is experiencing an unplanned and significant boost to its revenues. It’s only right that they’d offer a corresponding break to families and suspend the gas tax. Of course we see the Feds suspending the fuel tax — if the province did so as well, this would offer a meaningful break to families, farms, and businesses at the pumps at a time where they desperately needed it.”
When Premier Scott Moe was asked about the Carney government cutting the excise tax, he said “we welcome affordability measures.”
He said that was something his government was focused on “in a different way,” pointing to cutting income taxes and taxes across the board for Saskatchewan families.
“We’re down almost $4,400 a year on the taxes a Saskatchewan family pays,” he said, referring to the Sask. Party’s time in government.
When asked if the government might reconsider its stance on not suspending the fuel tax, Moe did not definitively rule it out.
“We’re always looking at what we can do to better serve the people of Saskatchewan,” Moe said, citing “what is an increasingly inflationary environment that we are living in.”
“So we’re always looking at what can we do more while living within our means as well — our financial means. So I would never say that that conversation is far away. It most certainly was a conversation in the most recent election just over a year ago.”
