Liberals eye re-branding of carbon tax after claiming Canadians are ‘confused’ about it

THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

According to the Toronto Star, the Liberal Party of Canada is seeking more effective ways of marketing its carbon tax in light of what it deems “confusion” and “misconceptions” about it.

The so-called "price on pollution" has been a point of contention in recent years, with Conservatives pointing to the tax as one reason for increased fuel and food costs across the country.

The Liberals say their climate policy actually puts more money back into the pockets of the majority of Canadians through its rebates.

Specifically, the Liberals claim that eight out of 10 households receive more money back from rebates than what they have to pay as a result of the tax.

The Trudeau Liberals are expected to collect nearly half a billion dollars in GST on the carbon tax this year, contradicting the claim that it is 'revenue neutral.'

MORE: https://t.co/6rFVt22zvv pic.twitter.com/WjRHb4ejdc

— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) January 25, 2024

Many Canadians appear not to be convinced by the Trudeau Liberals' claims. As reported by the Toronto Star, polling from Abacus Data shows that in Ontario — a primarily Liberal province — 45% of respondents thought the carbon tax was a bad policy while only 37% thought it was a good policy.

Furthermore, 49% of respondents in Atlantic provinces thought it was a bad policy while just 31% believed it was a good policy according to the polling.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has made "axing" the carbon tax one of the primary focuses of his campaign, citing the controversial measure as contributing to Canada's cost-of-living crisis.

Justin Trudeau’s Christmas gift to one farm in my riding: $16,000 in carbon taxes in a month.

Wonder why you can’t afford food?

Sign here to take the tax off: https://t.co/3JibVFznbc pic.twitter.com/V6PH9vNAw7

— Pierre Poilievre (@PierrePoilievre) December 14, 2023

The tax is widely accepted as being at least partially responsible for rising food prices through the increased cost of fuel used to transport it across the country.

However, there is debate amongst experts as to exactly how much the carbon tax increases food prices.

As reported by the National Post, University of Calgary economist Trevor Tombe said "The best estimates we have show very clearly that carbon taxes do increase food prices, but do so modestly."

"That doesn’t mean that we should or shouldn’t be concerned about small amounts," he added.

The Liberals are reportedly thinking of changing the name of the rebate in order to improve public perceptions of the climate policy. Others have suggested putting additional funds into advertisements for the carbon tax.