Mr. Chair, members, guests and witnesses, it's a pleasure to be here.
It's good see you again, Mr. Fonseca. It has been a number of years since we last commiserated, and a lot of water has gone under the bridge since that time.
Canadians for Affordable Energy is really the brainchild of the work I have done over the years on energy, not just in my previous jobs with GasBuddy or tomorrowsgaspricestoday.com, but also, of course, as a member of Parliament, where I led a number of initiatives dealing with the cost of energy and its implications on Canadians' finances. That affects everyone, whether it happens to be those on fixed incomes, those in the business sector, or students who are making their way into a most uncertain future.
Part of my message in being here today is really not one of providing guidance as to how the government should deliberate in terms of its expenditures, but perhaps borrowing from the past in terms of where I think the government may want to consider moving, and that's considering the dramatic significant increase in energy prices. Here I'm not only talking about gasoline or diesel prices, which are now at all-time records, but, of course, utilities costs, the ability for people to make ends meet in an unusually cold winter. Perhaps it's a sign of things to come, where we are seeing many people have to reach much deeper into their pockets, whether that be to heat by propane, for furnace fuel or for stove oil.
What we're seeing right across Canada is unusual. Perhaps it's not exceptional given what we're seeing in Europe today, but it's certainly an unusual spike in prices. If I go back just to the beginning of this year, Mr. Chair, the increase in energy prices now works out to about 14%. If one looks at, for instance, diesel prices, which are also a barometer for heating fuels and natural gas, on markets, we're looking at an increase that began at the beginning of the year at about $1.35 on average in Canada now pushing well towards $1.65. Ditto for gasoline at a time in which we're trying to come out of the COVID recovery. I think it's not lost on most of you as representatives, and you are getting some calls on this, but I would expect that there are some solutions.
I'll conclude very briefly, because I don't want to take up the five minutes. I want to hear from other witnesses as well as some of your questions. One of the tried and true methods has been to provide a rebate for Canadians. That is not a unique thought. The Liberals did it twice, in 2000 and 2002, in terms of an energy rebate. That is basically derived from the fact that as these prices go much higher, and are likely to remain high—not just because of carbon taxes but because of the dynamics in a market in which there is, obviously, a global shortage of oil and other important hydrocarbons—we're likely to see a scenario in which federal and provincial governments, through GST/HST, are going to be in receipt of a substantial windfall. I would think perhaps it might be best for governments to really strongly consider remitting some of that in the form of a GST rebate or other means.
I realize, of course, as well, that the government's finances are not exactly great emerging from prepandemic and pandemic expenditures, but as far as providing an impetus to growth and allowing for an orderly ascension from the COVID period, I think such an initiative would certainly be in order.
I also believe that governments may want to consider collectively for now what many other nations are looking at, and that is a moratorium on any future taxes on energy, whether it be electricity, natural gas, propane, diesel or gasoline. That would inevitably mean.... I'm, of course, making a big request here, because I know it runs counter to the narrative, but I think we would need to look at a moratorium on carbon taxes as well.
If we don't do that, and if we think we can rely on the idea that rebates will take care of it, I'm concerned about the inflationary effect this has and the secondary consequential effects this has. Whether you speak to farmers or those in the energy sector on all sides, you're looking at most admitting that the price and the cost of living is becoming, for many, unattainable. I think we all can agree, politics aside, that once you start messing around with the price of food, you have a much more serious problem on your hands.
I would suggest very humbly but very directly that one of the solutions to what I admit is a very complex problem would be to look at a moratorium on carbon taxes for now—on the increase in carbon taxes—as well as rebates to help Canadians defend themselves in a period and an era in which we are going to see inflation pretty much destroy the purchasing power of many.
I don't need to mention the fact that the weakness in the Canadian dollar, at a time of high energy prices, is something we have not witnessed in many years.
In fact, in 2014, when we saw oil pushing at $90 a barrel, the Canadian dollar traded within about 5%-8% of the U.S. greenback, which was important because we price all of our commodities in U.S. terms.
The fact that it now takes 127 pennies adds significantly to the cost of living for everybody, and is perhaps a hidden inflationary effect that I'm not sure statisticians are picking up when it comes to telling us what the inflation rates will be.
I'll leave that to the brighter folks out there, but in the meantime the two recommendations are ones that we believe would do well. They would prevent and lessen injury to the Canadian economy and to your constituents.
I look forward to your questions
in French and English.