On Sept. 2, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne extended the federal fuel tax holiday to the end of January. The cost this fiscal year: $5.3 billion. Energy Minister Tim Hodgson explained the thinking: "Canadians should not have to pay for what they did not cause, whether it is disruption in the Middle East or an unjustified trade war." 

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who made the province's cut permanent last year, had asked Ottawa to "match Ontario's ambition." The war has spiked both crude and petroleum product prices; the federal tax was fixed at cents per litre. 

I like the principle. Canadians shouldn't pay for what they didn't cause.

Hodgson went further. Extending the fuel tax suspension, he said, "ensures more money stays in Canadians' pockets," and stands "with every Canadian family as we build a stronger, more resilient Canada."

Fine sentiments, but completely built on sand. Ottawa and Ontario are both running budget deficits, so Canadians are still paying, only now with interest. Champagne said the fuel tax cut is covered by higher oil revenue and last year’s announced spending cuts. Neither appeared because the fuel tax came off. That logic doesn’t hold. The $5.3 billion is still borrowed.

This isn't a gift. It's a bill handed to our children, so two governments can look generous. Paying us off with more debt in our name is hardly an ambition worth matching. And, if you were hoping for a different approach from Pierre Poilievre don’t hold your breath.   

Meanwhile, while you pay at the pump and at the cash register, Canadian oil producers and refiners are collecting some of the largest windfalls in the history of the business, all because of a war they, too, had nothing to do with. Most of that money leaves the country. So no, the government is not making sure more money stays in Canadians' pockets. It is watching the money come out of those pockets and standing by while somebody else carries it across........

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