Ontario drivers to see higher prices at the pumps amid carbon tax increase
Ontario drivers should expect to see a surge in gas prices this month due to the carbon tax increase.
As of April 1, the price on carbon pollution in Canada went up by $15 per tonne. For gasoline, the tax will be 17.6 cents per litre, up about 3.3 cents per litre.
Diesel will go up about 4 cents per litre.
In Toronto, this means that prices at the pumps could go up to $1.62 per litre today, according to GasWizard.ca.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
Carbon pricing is part of the of the federal government’s plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and is set to increase each year until 2030. Provinces and territories either had to adopt their own levy on these emissions or they would be subject to the federal pricing model.
Ontario has chosen to not implement its own carbon pricing system. Premier Doug Ford has been vocal about his disdain for the policy, arguing it’s “the worst tax ever put on a bunch of people.”
In his 2024 budget, Ford extended the province’s gas and fuel tax rate cut, a temporary measure his government put into place in 2022 to combat the price increases, until the end of the year.
The cut slashes the gasoline tax by 5.7 cents per litre, and the fuel tax by 5.3 cents per litre. Ford’s government anticipates the tax rate cut has saved Ontario households an average of $320 over the last two and a half years since it was first introduced in 2022.
The gas and fuel tax rate cut has also cost the provincial government over a billion dollars in taxpayer funds.
It’s important to note that the federal government also offers a rebate to offset the cost of the carbon tax on consumers. Officials say that in Ontario a single individual may receive about $140 back when their taxes are filed.
- Carbon pricing 101: What the 2024 increase could mean for you
CTV News Political Analyst Scott Reid told Newstalk1010’s Moore in the Morning Monday that while most households will come out net positive following the rebate, the perception of the carbon tax increase is a negative one.
“It looks and feels like you're getting jammed at a time when cost of living is already weighing heavily on people,” he said. “Nobody ever got elected raising taxes. This is just a stone cold reality.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6979388.1722030190!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
BREAKING Celine Dion stages comeback with performance at Paris Olympics opening ceremony
Celine Dion staged the comeback of her career during the opening ceremony at the Olympic Games in Paris.
Jasper wildfire: 'Several weeks' before Jasper can return, premier says
Premier Danielle Smith said Friday afternoon in Hinton while weather conditions are cooler, the Jasper fire is still considered out of control and that Jasper residents can expect to be away from their homes "for several weeks."
Driver charged after flashing high beams at approaching police
Orillia OPP arrested and charged a driver with impaired driving after flashing their high beams.
'He was just gone': Police ramp up search for vulnerable 3-year-old boy in Mississauga, Ont.
Police in Mississauga are conducting a full-scale search of the city’s biggest park for a non-verbal toddler who went missing Thursday evening. Sgt. Jennifer Trimble told reporters Friday morning that there has been no trace of three-year-old Zaid Abdullah since 6:20 p.m., when he was last seen with his parents in Erindale Park, near Dundas Street West and Mississauga Road.
Irish museum pulls Sinead O'Connor waxwork after just one day due to backlash
An Irish museum will withdraw a waxwork of singer-songwriter Sinéad O’Connor just one day after installing it, following a backlash from her family and the public, it told CNN in a statement on Friday.
Turpel-Lafond won't sue CBC over Cree heritage report that took 'heavy toll': lawyer
The lawyer for a former judge whose claims to be Cree were questioned in a CBC investigation says his client is not considering legal action against the broadcaster after the Law Society of British Columbia this week backed her claims of Indigenous heritage.
Health Canada warns some naloxone kits contain false instructions
Health Canada is warning some take-home naloxone kits come with bad instructions that should be ignored in favour of the correct guidance.
Winnipeg senior's account overdrawn $146,000 for water bill
A Winnipeg senior is getting soaked with a six figure water bill.
Paris Olympics kicks off with ambitious but rainy opening ceremony on the Seine River
Celebrating its reputation as a cradle of revolution, Paris kicked off its first Summer Olympics in a century on Friday with a rain-soaked, rule-breaking opening ceremony studded with stars and fantasy along the Seine River.