With winter setting in across the country, Canadians are seeing their heating bills rise and in Ontario, the addition of the HST on their bills has some citizens concerned.

A major debate in the recent Provincial election, removing the HST from heating costs has created tensions in Parliament and has led to a bill being introduced to address the issue.  MPP Michael Mantha who represents Northern Ontario constituents was the one responsible for bringing the bill to Parliament in hopes that it would bring about changes.

In a close vote of 54-50, all PC and NDP members of Parliament voted the bill through a second time.  While this has encouraged some MPPs the provincial Liberals have adamantly expressed their displeasure and vowed to vote down the bill before it becomes law.  According to provincial Finance Minister Dwight Duncan, the Liberals have already determined not to call the bill for a third time which will ensure its failure.  And in a recent statement, Duncan declared that in order to have the bill passed, the NDP and PC MPPs would have to defeat the government thus, calling another election.

The proposed bill would trim approximately $150-300 annually from Ontarians heating bills but ultimately cost the province $350 million a year from removing the 8 per cent from heating bills.

While Premier McGuinty stated that the bill is “[...] not a bad idea in and of itself” he is concerned with how the province would make up the $350 million.  McGuinty also believes that cutting the HST from heating bills is not necessarily the wisest course of action given the current provincial deficit of $16 billion.  The primary focus of the Liberal government is to address the needs of seniors by introducing and implementing $1,500 annual home renovation credit.  This plan is geared towards giving citizens a break on the cost of living and allowing seniors to live in their homes longer because of implemented home improvements such as wheelchair ramps.  According to McGuinty, if passed, the plan would stimulate the economy creating more than 10,000 jobs and generating $800 million in the construction industry.

It is clear that McGuinty and the Liberals will continue to focus their energy on other issues not surrounding the HST.