Manitoba extends gas tax holiday

The Manitoba government intends to extend the gas tax holiday until the end of the calendar year, Premier Wab Kinew announced today.

“Since we cut the gas tax in January, inflation has gone down in Manitoba,” said Kinew. “This is what governments are for. We know Manitobans are still struggling with the impact of interest rates and grocery prices so we’re going to continue to step up and save you 14 cents at the pump.”

The current gas tax holiday on gasoline and diesel used to operate motor vehicles will be extended until Dec. 31, noted the premier.

The premier noted the people who drive the most popular type of vehicle in the province, a pickup truck, will save around $14 every time they fuel up. The Manitoba Bureau of Statistics estimates the gas tax holiday has directly contributed to a decrease of 0.4 percentage points to inflation.

Since the introduction of the gas tax holiday, Manitoba has had the lowest average retail price on gasoline in Canada and inflation has dropped to within the Bank of Canada’s target inflation range of one to three per cent.