Ontario NDP MPs must demand carbon tax relief

Toronto, ON: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is calling on federal NDP MPs from Ontario to support a motion to remove the carbon tax from all forms of home heating.

“Ontarians are paying hundreds of dollars in carbon taxes to heat their homes and they need relief,” said CTF Ontario Director Jay Goldberg. “Only a small fraction of Ontarians will benefit from the federal government’s suspension of the carbon tax on home heating oil. Since the NDP has a formal agreement with the Liberal government, the party’s MPs have a clear opportunity to push for relief for taxpayers on all forms of home heating.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced last week that his government is removing the federal carbon tax from furnace oil for the next three years. On Monday, the House of Commons will vote on a motion to scrap the carbon tax on all forms of home heating.

Just two per cent of Ontarians use furnace oil to heat their homes. Only three per cent of Canadian households use furnace oil, with most of those households located in Atlantic Canada.

More than 60 per cent of Ontarians rely on natural gas to heat their homes. The average Ontario home using natural gas will face a $326 carbon tax bill this winter.

Ontario has five NDP MPs, including Charlie Angus, Matthew Green, Carol Hughes, Brian Masse and Lindsay Mathyssen. Angus publicly supported the suspension of the carbon tax on furnace oil and called for relief for families across Canada.

“Angus, Green, Hughes, Masse and Mathyssen need to stand up for Ontario taxpayers and demand relief on all forms of home heating,” Goldberg said. “No Ontario household should have to pay a carbon tax just to stay warm in the winter.”