moved for leave to introduce Bill C-229, an act to establish the Energy Price Commission.
Mr. Speaker,I want to thank my seconder on this bill, the member for Sault Ste. Marie. We rise today to introduce this bill to address the spiralling, out of control and out of whack, costs of energy, home heating fuel and gasoline. On behalf of Canadians everywhere, we seek to find some remedy, some way to give comfort to Canadians who are being kicked in the teeth once again by their energy costs.
This bill seeks to create the energy price commission to regulate the wholesale and the retail costs of motor fuels including gasoline, diesel, propane, heating fuel and electric power.
The purpose of price regulation is to avoid unreasonable increases that affect the cost of living and keep businesses down. Frankly, Canadians have a gut feeling that they are being gouged. I am here to say that they are being gouged by unreasonable rip-off prices by oil cartels.
This bill would provide reasonable consistency in prices. This commission would set prices for a six month period. If the oil prices wanted to raise those prices, they would have to go before this national commission and justify why increases in oil and gas prices were justified, and then lock in for six months so that small businesses and homeowners could have some stability and some ability to cope with these costs for energy that are often out of their control.
I think there will be broad national support for this idea of an energy price commission. People in Calgary and Edmonton may be somewhat concerned, but I can assure members that this is not a national energy plan. This is a national price commission to assist Canadians so that they are not ripped off every year when it comes to gas and home heating fuel costs.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)