Three steps needed to provide some energy price relief

Political Speak - Nova Scotians are quick to make their views known when they feel gasoline prices have gone too high, even by current standards - and who can blame them? Governments should ensure that the cost of gasoline is as fair and low as possible, at a time when so many families see their standard of living threatened by skyrocketing energy prices.

The fact of the matter is that there are three concrete steps the Premier can take right now to provide at least some relief. I welcome him to borrow these ideas, as he has done with so many NDP plans in the past.

1. Change the HST so there is no tax on tax when you buy fuel at the pump. It is high time we stopped taxing the tax on gasoline. This taxation scheme was devised by the Liberals in the mid-1990s. Here how it works: The cost of gas plus the motive fuel tax and the federal excise tax creates a total cost of gas prior to the application of the HST. The HST is then applied so you pay tax not only on the gas but on the previously applied taxes as well.

This is something I have been committed to changing since I was first elected. The HST is an extremely unfair tax when it is applied to things that ought not to be taxed in the first place and, on top of that, is applied unfairly.

The savings would be about two cents on a per-litre basis, but it adds up quickly every time we fill up. The end result would only mean that government doesn't accrue quite as high a windfall at commuters expense every time the price of gas rises.

2. Take the responsibility for setting gas prices out of the hands of the Conservative Government.

It's time the decisions for setting gas prices was taken from the Conservative government and given to an independent agency. Premier MacDonald should make the Utility and Review Board the regulator so there is no opportunity for political pressure to influence price-setting. That political pressure can come in many ways including from big oil companies and the fact the province benefits immensely from the tax revenue that comes with higher gas prices.

Eliminate Conservative decision making and the "cascading" tax, and the formula for setting prices in Nova Scotia can be applied impartially, giving Nova Scotians a price advantage. There is a web site that monitors the price of gasoline (www.mjervin.com). They do a weekly pump survey and you can compare the pre-tax or commodity price to the rest of country. If you look at the pump price survey you will see that last week we were 4.7 cents below the national average and among the lowest in the country.

In fact, since regulation we have been below the national average the large majority of the time (the last few weeks by about 4.5 cents). Those who advocate getting rid of gas regulations are advocating for higher prices (before regulation were above the national average most of the time). This is why the big oil companies are anti-regulation.

3. Push for a national strategy to deal with energy, including new steps and federal power to deal with price gouging.

I have always taken the position that consumer protection is a legitimate role for government. If the government can't protect your interests, what hope does one consumer have?

A few days ago, Jack Layton asked the federal government to audit the oil companies for evidence of price gouging and to investigate possible collusion. He acknowledged that this is a national problem because all jurisdictions have the same problem and some more severe than Nova Scotia.

Nova Scotia can lead the way in calling for the federal government to develop a strategy to deal with rising prices for not just gas, but for electricity, fuel oil and natural gas. We need to insist that any national strategy include mechanisms that ensure consumer protections against price gouging.

These are three ideas where the Premier could show genuine leadership, four areas where he could have a direct impact on the price of gas in Nova Scotia. I invite him to act quickly to help Nova Scotia families deal with the very real problem of high gas prices.