A motion tabled by Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre asking the Senate to pass a carbon tax exemption bill for farmers has been defeated in the House of Commons.
All major opposition parties helped Bill C-234 pass in the House in March, but on Nov. 29 the Bloc Québécois sided with the Liberals to help defeat the motion 178 votes to 135.
“Instead of providing Canadians with some much-needed relief, the Liberals and their Bloc allies are working to make everything more expensive,” wrote the Tories in a statement after the vote.
Mr. Poilievre’s motion called on the “unelected Senate to immediately pass” the private member’s bill tabled by Tory MP Ben Lobb.
The bill seeks to remove the carbon tax from gas and propane to heat or cool barns, or to dry grain.
The Senate only needs one last vote for the bill to become law, but has been delayed following attempts by Liberal-appointed senators to pass last-minute amendments, some of which were already rejected in committee.
Conservatives say the Senate should respect the will of the House and pass the bill.
Conservatives had mounted a campaign around C-234 after the Liberals announced in late October that there would be a pause on the carbon tax being applied to heating oil.
The move was touted by the government as an affordability measure for Canadians, yet it mostly impacts Atlantic provinces where this form of heating is more common than in other parts of Canada.
The Tories argue this proves that the carbon tax is a financial burden on households and that the move was made to appease Liberal MPs and voters from the area amid declining polling numbers.
The Conservatives have gained steadily in the polls over the Liberals with a message centred on affordability and a promise to “axe” the carbon tax.
