The Trudeau government’s directive to banks to relabel the carbon tax rebates landing in some Canadians’ bank accounts is being criticized as an attempt at putting “lipstick on a pig.”
Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault pushed the government to compel banks to make the change, which went into effect Monday, amid a nationwide wave of backlash against the increasing federal carbon tax.
Carbon tax rebates had previously been given labels including “federal payment” or “EFT Canada,” which confused some account holders about where the payments were coming from, according to the federal government.
“The fact that they haven’t been doing it now for many years led us to take this position,” said Guilbeault at the time.
Banks will now label government payments accepted for deposit as either “Canada Carbon Rebate” or “CdaCarbonRebate.”
“What the Trudeau government is doing here is putting lipstick on its carbon tax pig,” Franco Terrazzano, federal director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation told True North.
“Average Canadians know the carbon tax is costing them big time and making the necessities of life more expensive. The government doesn’t have a communications problem, it has a ‘carbon tax is making life more expensive’ problem.”
For example, banks TD and BMO have adopted the “CdaCarbonRebate” label, which fits the 15-character limit imposed by some banks, while CIBC has yet to confirm which label it will use.
With the exception of Quebec, British Columbia and the three territories which have their own carbon pricing systems, the government pays out the carbon tax rebates every three months on the 15th.
While these changes may make it easier for consumers to recognize how these rebates are being received, the federal carbon pricing system itself remains a highly contentious political issue.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was booed by a group of Canadian mayors for claiming the carbon tax helps more Canadians than it hurts last month.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has repeatedly pledged to “axe the tax,” if elected.
The carbon tax has added 17.6 cents to the price of a litre of gasoline, creating a ripple effect on raising the costs of other goods and services as well.
It will cost the Canadian economy $11.9 billion this year, costing each Canadian an average of $295 in lost GDP, rising to $30 billion by 2030, or $678 per person, according to calculations by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
Saskatchewan has taken the strongest stand against the federal carbon tax, refusing to collect it altogether, a move the federal government vowed to fight through the Canada Revenue Agency.
However, the province was granted an emergency injunction against the CRA to block the federal government from collecting the carbon tax directly by the Federal Court last week.
Saskatchewan is not alone, as seven out of 10 premiers publicly opposed its most recent scheduled tax increase which came into effect on April 1st, calling for it to be halted beforehand to give Canadians some financial relief.
Despite the majority premiers opposing the increase, the Trudeau government went ahead with the increase, raising it an additional 23%.
“Instead of relabelling his carbon tax, Trudeau should scrap the carbon tax,” said Terrazzano.