NDP Motion to Remove GST From Home Heating Bills Fails

New Democratic Party Leader Jagmeet Singh listens to a question during an availability on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Jan. 19, 2023. The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld

A New Democrat motion that would have removed the GST from home heating bills and provided funding for a national heat pump program has failed in the House of Commons, with the Conservatives, Liberals, and Bloc Quebecois voting against it.

The NDP motion, introduced by MP Taylor Bachrach, called for the federal government to remove the GST from all forms of home heating, make eco-energy retrofits and heat pumps free for low- and middle-income Canadians, and finance the changes by implementing a tax on the excess profits of oil and gas companies. It failed by 292 votes to 30.

During question period before the vote, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh warned that the “Liberal and Conservative corporate coalition may strike again today.”

“We put forward a plan to help Canadians with their home heating bill, to help Canadians tackle the climate crisis, and make big oil and gas pay for it. Now environmental organizations are on board. But climate delay Liberals and climate deny Conservatives will back the profits of big oil again,” Mr. Singh said.

In response, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the New Democrats had voted in favour of a Conservative motion “against one of the most successful measures Canada has ever seen in the fight against climate change—putting a price on pollution.”

“Seeing the NDP vote with the Conservatives against a price on pollution is something that disappointed millions of progressives across this country,” Mr. Trudeau said.

On Nov. 6, a Conservative motion to pause the federal carbon tax on all forms of home heating for three years was also defeated. The NDP supported the motion, but it failed due to the Liberals, Bloc Québécois, and Green Party.

The NDP has typically voted in favour of Liberal motions since it entered into a supply-and-confidence agreement with the government in 2022, meaning it would support key Liberal policies in exchange for cabinet taking action on some New Democrat priorities.

While Ottawa recently announced a temporary three-year pause on the carbon tax for home heating oil, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre called the move “divisive” as it mostly applied to Atlantic provinces with more residents that primarily use that method of heating their homes.

On Nov. 7, Mr. Singh told reporters that his party also rejected the “division” and “the pitting region against region” of the Liberals’ carbon tax exemption plan, which was why they voted for the Tory motion. But Mr. Singh also accused the Conservatives of having a “lack of a climate [change] plan,” and said the new NDP motion would address both issues.

The carbon tax has proven to be a controversial policy, with 57 percent of Canadians surveyed wanting relief from carbon pricing on home heating, according to a recent Leger poll commissioned by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.