Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre proposes eliminating diesel fuel taxes and other measures he says would reduce costs and boost Canada’s refining and distribution capacity.
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Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is urging federal action to make diesel fuel more affordable and to strengthen Canada’s long-term supply, arguing that changes to taxes and fuel-market rules would lower costs and encourage additional refining and infrastructure.
Poilievre said Canada already produces enough diesel to meet national demand, but that transportation bottlenecks can leave some regions dependent on U.S. imports. He argued that reducing the tax burden on diesel would help address affordability pressures that come from those supply constraints.
His proposal includes eliminating all tax on diesel sales until at least Canada Day. He said the plan would do so by extending the “full fuel excise tax cut” until July 1 of next year and by removing GST from the purchase of fuel.
Poilievre also called for removing diesel production taxes. He said the Conservatives would permanently scrap the federal industrial carbon tax and remove the Clean Fuel Standard, which he described as adding costs to diesel production and discouraging new investment in refinery capacity.
The policy outline was delivered at a suburban Ottawa gas station. Poilievre said the approach would both expand refining capacity and improve the ability of refineries to process more Canadian crude.
He also argued that the plan would support building the transportation and storage infrastructure needed to supply every region. In his view, ensuring fuel availability across the country depends not only on refining capacity but also on logistical networks that can move product where it is needed.
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