57% of Canadians Want Carbon Tax Removed From Home Heating: Poll

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivers remarks at a Liberal Party of Canada fundraiser in Gatineau, Que., on Oct. 24, 2023. Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press

More than half of Canadians want the federal government to axe the carbon tax from home heating bills, according to a new poll.

Fifty-seven percent of those surveyed want relief from carbon pricing on all home heating, according to the Leger poll, which was commissioned by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF). Twenty-one percent opposed extending the carbon tax exemption while 22 percent of respondents said they were unsure.

The highest support for removing carbon pricing from home heating was in Atlantic Canada with 66 percent of those polled in favour. British Columbia followed with 64 percent while Saskatchewan and Manitoba each came in at 60 percent support. Fifty-eight percent of Ontario residents supported the move while Alberta and Quebec came in at 54 percent and 50 percent support respectively.

“The numbers from every region show Canadians know it’s unfair to give some people a break on their home heating bills, but not everyone,” CTF federal director Franco Terrazzano said in a Nov. 7 press release.

“More than 20 per cent of Canadians weren’t sure about the issue yet. As more people learn about it, more people will demand a break on their home heating bills,” he added. “The polling numbers are clear: people don’t think it’s fair to get hit with the carbon tax for trying to stay warm during the winter.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a pause on the carbon tax for home heating oil last month for the 10 provinces and territories where the federal fuel charge is collected. The move largely benefits Atlantic Canada, where 30 percent of homeowners still use furnace oil to heat their homes.

Since the announcement, premiers in Ontario and the Prairie provinces have been demanding “fair treatment,” saying the exemption helps very few of their residents who, predominantly, heat with natural gas.

Mr. Trudeau has so far declined to expand the exemption to include other types of home heating.

“There will absolutely not be any other carve-outs or suspensions of the price on pollution,” Mr. Trudeau told reporters on Oct. 31. “This is designed to phase out heating oil.”

The prime minister’s declaration sparked the premiers and federal opposition alike to double down on their calls for an exemption across the board.

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has been calling on the Liberals to extend the carbon tax exemption on all types of home heating for “all Canadians” since the end of October. His party put forward a motion in the House of Commons on Nov. 6 requesting the extension but was defeated despite receiving support from the NDP.

The Bloc Québécois and Green Party voted along with the Liberals to defeat the motion 186-135.