The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is calling on the federal government to pause the looming 23 per cent carbon tax hike, or scrap the tax entirely, to provide Canadians with some relief.

CTF Prairie Director Gage Haubrich says although Prime Minister Justin Trudeau claims that 80 per cent of families will receive more money in rebates than they are paying out in carbon tax, the Parliamentary Budget Officer says otherwise.

“According to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, overall, this year, the average Saskatchewan family will be paying $525 more than they get back in rebates for the carbon tax. By 2030, that number will be over $1700.”

Trudeau also recently claimed that the tax is revenue neutral to the federal government, however Haubrich disagrees.

“When you go to the pump and you’re paying carbon tax on your gas, you’re also paying GST on top of the carbon tax. So even if the government says the carbon tax is revenue neutral, they are also getting all that extra money from the GST they’re charging, as well,” He explains. “After this April 1 hike, every single time you fill up a sedan you’re going to be paying over $10 in just carbon tax. If the government gets their way and keeps increasing the carbon tax, by 2030, it’s going to cost 37 cents per litre on every litre of gasoline.”

He believes the carbon tax is more of a tax plan than an environment plan and cites British Columbia as an example of where this was evident.

“For years before the pandemic, British Columbia had one of the highest carbon taxes in the country, but their emissions steadily rose every year.”

Haubrich says getting the carbon tax lowered is crucial, is it is hindering the farmers that grow the food, the truckers that transport it, and the grocery store owners keeping it fresh, ultimately jacking the price of filling the fridge for all Canadian families.