Spots 
Canada faces a diesel-price emergency and must be energy independent, Pierre Poilievre said Sunday, while calling for a cut to federal taxes on the fuel in order to boost domestic production to a million barrels a day in the next five years.
Speaking at a gas station in suburban Ottawa, the Conservative Leader made a policy announcement calling for the removal of all taxes on the “vital fuel” until at least Canada Day. He proposed doing so by extending the excise-tax cut and removing the GST from the fuel purchase.
Currently, the federal government charges 5 per cent GST on diesel, which amounts to about 13 cents a litre. A federal excise tax, which usually amounts to about 4 cents per litre, is currently suspended by Ottawa until the end of next January.
Mr. Poilievre’s Sunday fuel proposal was made amid global turbulence that includes the wars in the Mideast and in Ukraine, has placed enormous pressure on the world’s energy supplies, spurring soaring diesel prices.
The Conservative Leader said that while there are global factors, it does not explain why Canada is paying about 32 cents more per litre than the U.S. for diesel.
Canada produces most of the diesel used in Canada, with refining capacity spread out across more than a dozen refineries.
In 2024, Statistics Canada reported a record production level of about 718,000 barrels per day. Industry experts say, depending on the year, that about 10 to 20 per cent of diesel is imported from outside the country.
Mr. Poilievre wants to see the price gap between Canada and the U.S. eliminated within a five-year period by increasing domestic production of diesel and other refined fuels.
“The goal is to immediately reduce prices through lower taxes, and within five years break our dependence on American diesel to ensure that every single Canadian has access to Canadian-made diesel,” he said. South of the border, skyrocketing diesel prices are being debated ahead of the November U.S. midterms.
Republicans in key states such as Michigan and Iowa have urged an end to exporting diesel from refineries in America. U.S. President Donald Trump signalled that he supports the idea, but his energy secretary recently indicated a “blanket ban” will not happen.
Canada faces a diesel-price emergency and must be energy independent, Pierre Poilievre said Sunday, while calling for a cut to federal taxes on the fuel in order to boost domestic production to a million barrels a day in the next five years.