Mr. Speaker, we should have competitive tax rates. Tax rates would be more competitive if this Liberal member and this Liberal government had not gotten into bed with the NDP to nix the tax relief that was offered in the first Liberal budget this spring. We should have a competitive economy and competitive tax rates, but we are not there yet.
There were three points that the member made in his preamble. His first point was that GST collected on fuel taxes will not necessarily mean savings for citizens, because if citizens are not paying that GST tax by purchasing fuel, then they will pay that GST if they are purchasing groceries, clothing, books or whatever, and that money would still flow back to the government.
That is a pretty weak argument. In fact, it is a profoundly weak argument, because what the member is missing is the very idea of choice. Citizens should have more choice in how they want to live their lives.
The reason I am a Conservative is that I believe in lower taxes, less government and more freedom. I believe in personal responsibility and empowering citizens to make choices about how they want to live their lives. Everything should not be governed by what impact it will have on a Liberal government and its ability to have a certain amount of money to spend.
What it should be about, and what we should be trying to do here, is setting up an efficient economic system so that citizens have more choice in how they want to live their lives. They should not be saddled by excessive GST on fuel because that money would just be collected elsewhere. Citizens should have choice as to whether or not they want to purchase fuel or purchase something else and not be hammered down by the cost of heavy taxes.
The second point the member made was about the issue of tax relief on fuel not being passed on to consumers in times past, the argument being that if we cut taxes on fuel, the oil companies will just come in and consume the tax room because the presumption is that the market sets the price of fuel relative to what the taxes are. The truth is that this is not entirely true. The Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment made that the centrepoint of his whole presentation here this evening and it is not true. It has been true in circumstances, but it is not a universal truth.
There are certainly circumstances where taxes have been lowered and consumers have seen that benefit. That is what needs to take place. If we drive around almost any city in this country, we will realize that at one gas station, gas is $1.06 per litre, and if we drive three blocks, it is $1.17 per litre, and if we go somewhere else, it is $1.04 per litre, all in the same day. That is because there is competition. It has never been proven in the last 15 years that there is some kind of collusion between the gas companies. There is competition, and if the government lowers the taxes it will be reflected in the price at the pumps.
The third point the member made is that the government said it does want to do something with the home heating situation that will arise this coming winter and that even though the government made some mistakes in the past it was not all bad and we should try it again. The government did not just make some mistakes in the past; it was a horrendous failure. Over $1 billion went to people who did not need home heating rebates. Prisoners got it. People who were dead got it. Students in university, who do not pay for home heating fuel, got it. One out of every three cheques went to people who did not need it. It was a huge waste on the treasury. That tax relief could have gone somewhere else or that investment could have been used by the government on something else.
I received a home heating rebate cheque. Every member of Parliament in this place earns $144,000 a year. I do not hear any members of the House complaining about their salaries, but the government so pathetically botched that home heating rebate that I as a member of Parliament personally received a home heating rebate cheque. If the member thinks his government's scheme for home heating rebates is a good plan and wants to revisit that this fall and this coming winter as a solution to the high cost of fuel, the member is sadly mistaken and clearly has not learned the lessons of the past.