Conservatives call on Trudeau to cut the carbon tax in front of Charlottetown MP's office

Conservatives took their fight over the federal government's carbon tax directly to the front steps of a Charlottetown MP's office Tuesday.

About 20 people gathered in front of Liberal member of Parliament Sean Casey's office, led by New Brunswick Conservative MP Jake Stewart. 

The group called for the Liberal government to "axe the tax," and stand down on its plans to increase the levy April 1. 

Stewart, the MP for Miramichi-Grand Lake, said he's heard concerns from Islanders during meetings with farmers and business leaders on P.E.I.

"People care about the environment. But this is a tax. It's a tax, on a tax, on a tax," he said.

"It's hitting the farmer who grows the food, the trucker who trucks it. The consumer who purchases it. It hits the single mother buying groceries. It hits the seniors buying groceries. And it hits everybody buying groceries."

The federal government introduced its carbon levy in P.E.I. in 2022. At the time, plans the province submitted to put a price on carbon fell short of what Ottawa had set as its minimum benchmark for reduced emissions.

The carbon tax hike on April 1 would add 3.5 cents per litre to the cost of regular gasoline, and four cents a litre to the cost of diesel.

With the increase, the overall carbon tax applied to fuel on P.E.I. would total 23 cents per litre for gas, and 26.6 cents per litre for diesel.

Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has said, rather than raising the costs of "traditional energy," his party plans to create incentives for companies to lower the costs of low-carbon energy alternatives, such as nuclear power, carbon capture and tidal power.

Casey, ironically, was in New Brunswick while the Miramichi-Grand Lake MP was in front of his office. The Charlottetown MP told CBC News voters are more concerned about the health-care system than they are the carbon tax. 

"I really wish that the tactics that were being employed [by the Conservatives] weren't praying on people's fears," Casey said.

"The fact is, we're in difficult economic times. People have a lot of concern over that and Mr. Poilievre and his caucus have seized upon those fears and amped them up by using misinformation and disinformation to link the economic woes to the price on pollution." 

Casey said the carbon tax is responsible for about 15 cents on a $100 bag of groceries, so the tax is not the reason for the record-high inflation rate.