Will axing the consumer carbon price save you money? Where you may feel it

Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday he was ending the consumer carbon price, touting the move as helping “hard-pressed Canadians.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday he was ending the consumer carbon price, touting the move as helping “hard-pressed Canadians.”

While that fulfilled growing calls from premiers across the country — both progressive and conservative — some economists say Canadians will notice a difference both in some costs and also in the lack of rebates.

The carbon price was geared towards putting a price on pollution to get people to use fewer fossil fuels, but it has faced criticisms for years and seen pushback at both the provincial and federal levels.

The federal government tried to offset its carbon pricing plan with the Canada Carbon Rebate, which saw quarterly tax-free payments delivered to eligible Canadians. Ottawa has said about 80 per cent of Canadians are getting more from the rebates than they pay in carbon pricing.

A family of four in Ontario living in a city, for example, could receive up to $1,120 annually through rebates. A rural family of four would see rebates o up t0 $1,344.

Those families in Alberta would get up to $1,800 in urban areas and $2,160 in rural communities.

According to Moshe Lander, an Alberta economist who also teaches at Concordia University, the cut to the carbon price could mean a drop in gas prices of about 10 cents to 15 cents per litre. But with the rebate also cancelled — one more payment in April is still expected — Lander said Canadians will likely both positive and negative impacts.

“You’re not going to get that cheque every three months and so that is going to leave a bit of a hole,” he said. “And when Canadians are concerned about cost of living affordability issues, this is a problem.”