Mr. Speaker, gasoline prices recently shot to a staggering new high in my riding of Jonquière.
Between January 1999 and January 2000, the average price for diesel fuel increased by 40%, while the price of gasoline rose from 54.4 cents to 75.6 cents a litre between June 1999 and April 2000.
Meanwhile, the federal government is acting like a hypocrite. If we calculate the revenues from the federal excise tax, the GST and the taxes paid by oil companies, we soon realize that the federal government has a margin of over $6 billion.
Because the government seems to be in no hurry to act on this issue, the public has decided to try to shake the government out of its lethargy. Since Monday, the residents of the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region have been boycotting Petro-Canada.
If the Minister of Finance wants to end that boycott, he will have to take steps to lower the price of gasoline. With the fiscal flexibility he has, the minister can lift the 10 cent federal excise tax until gasoline prices get back to normal.
The minister must stop letting the provinces take the blame, he must assume his responsibilities—