Business of Supply  It is important to do this given the current crises in housing, inflation and interest rates, which are making it difficult for people to afford food, shelter, clothing and home heating in particular. We have to bring back common sense. I cannot say it often enough. We need to axe this carbon tax. The Bloc Québécois will tell us that the tax does not apply to Quebeckers. Of course the Bloc fully supports the government on this. The reality is that in a country like Canada, which Quebec is still part of, the carbon tax applies in the provinces where it applies.

Business of Supply  Finally, it gets shipped to the lumber yard, and the lumber yard brings it to the job site, and that costs carbon tax. All those taxes at each step along the way are one of the reasons their carbon tax is—

Carbon Pricing  They, in fact, voted against the Conservative opposition motion, which would have given carbon tax relief to all Canadians, regardless of where they live and regardless of what kind of furnace they happen to have in their home. We have been clear on this side, right from the beginning, that the carbon tax is not an environmental plan; it is a tax plan—

Carbon Pricing  Mr. Speaker, today the Conservatives tabled a motion asking the NDP-Liberal carbon tax coalition to cancel its plans to increase the carbon tax on April 1. After eight years, the Prime Minister is not worth the cost, and farmers' tax bills prove that. The numbers are staggering.

Carbon Pricing  Speaker, the environment minister is struggling to find some positive numbers. I will tell him the number. When the Liberals quadruple the carbon tax, it will cost Canadian farmers $1 billion a year. That does not include the GST, also $1 billion, that the Liberals are charging on top of the carbon tax. Higher carbon taxes and more GST will mean higher food costs for Canadians.

Liberal Party of Canada  Mr. Speaker, the government remains in denial that its punitive carbon tax causes inflation. Who says the carbon tax is inflationary? It is the Parliamentary Budget Officer; the Governor of the Bank of Canada; every farmer, manufacturer, producer, distributor and retailer in Canada; and Canadians who buy food.

Finance committee  As you know, the federal carbon price applies only to some parts of the country and not others, like British Columbia, for example. Eliminating the carbon tax on home heating doesn't do anything for Canadians living in provinces with their own carbon tax regimes, so that's why we prefer the GST approach. I would be very curious to get the bank's opinion on what the inflationary effect of removing the GST on all forms of home heating would in fact be, and then we could have a bit of a comparison with that approach.

Business of Supply  They have zero impact on balancing the budget. Third, the Conservatives talk about the carbon tax and only the carbon tax. We are not getting anywhere. We are constantly going backward. This is 2024. They do not have an environmental vision or a transition plan. We are talking about forest fires and floods.

Carbon Pricing  Not only did the radical environment minister admit to pressuring senators to gut Bill C-234, but farmers are getting another carbon tax on April 1. After eight years, the Prime Minister has proven that he is most certainly not worth the cost. Will the Liberals reject the Senate's amendments and completely remove the carbon tax from farmers to lower food prices for Canadians?

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, my colleague pointed out a very important fact that a lot of Canadians do not hear about, and that is the reality that there is GST on the carbon tax. The Parliamentary Budget Officer has clearly stated, as the member pointed out, that over half a billion dollars has been collected on the GST on that carbon tax to date, this year alone.

Business of Supply  The government keeps telling us that it is sending quarterly cheques to Canadian households. That is nice and all, but it is not just Canadian households that are paying the carbon tax. All organizations are paying the carbon tax. Nobody is exempt. I think it is important for us to have this debate today. Earlier, my colleague from Mirabel mocked the fact that we want to get rid of the tax on the grounds that it does not apply in Quebec, but the truth is, the carbon tax that applies across the country impacts Quebec, too.

Carbon Pricing  The reality is they are behind in the polls because they are not helping Canadians make ends meet. They are making it worse for them. What we need to do is axe the carbon tax. We need to build more homes. There is a motion in front of Parliament that would make life more affordable right now for Canadians. Will the government support our common-sense motion to stop the carbon tax increase on April 1?

Conservative Party of Canada  However, Conservatives will fix the budget and stop this out-of-control, inflation-causing spending. Farmers such as Rob feed Canadians. He is paying $15,000 in carbon tax to heat his barn. If the government quadruples it, that is $60,000 in carbon tax. The Conservatives will axe the tax and bring home lower prices. NDP-Liberals are just not worth the cost.

Business of Supply  If you want me to put a number on it, it's in the range of 0.15 per cent, so quite small.” What is interesting is that Statistics Canada suggests the carbon tax increases the average cost of food by about 0.33% relative to what it would be in the absence of the carbon tax. Can the member explain why the Conservative Party of Canada today continues to mislead Canadians on the important issue of inflation?

Carbon Pricing  Speaker, after eight years of this NDP-Liberal coalition, Canadians cannot afford to eat. Forcing those who grow the food we need to pay the carbon tax is nonsensical policy. In fact, Vermeer's Dairy, a farm near Camrose, paid $1,700 in the carbon tax alone in December. They expect that to double when the bill comes for this past January.