Charlie Angus has written to the Competition Bureau asking them to investigate gas prices in Northern Ontario. Angus has written to the Competition Bureau in the past and been frustrated by their unwillingness to look into the question of price gouging in the north. He says that the record low prices of oil necessitates the Competition Bureau playing a more active role in responding to the concerns of northerners.
Angus says the retail price of gas affects every family in Northern Ontario. “Northerners rely on vehicles to work, sometimes over long distances. The discrepancy in price between the north and south can’t simply be explained away by the cost of delivery. The outrageous discrepancy between Timmins and other communities is impacting our regional competitiveness. A difference of 10 or 20 cents a litre can seriously erode the bottom line of any northern business whether tourism, transportation, forestry, agriculture or mining”
Angus wants The Bureau to review the current state of fuel costs in the north and determine whether or not prices are being kept artificially inflated.
“We know that when a priceof a barrel of crude rises on international markets, the price of gas in the pumps jumps immediately. But, if the price of a barrel of crude drops on international markets, the price of gas at the pump in Northern Ontario still remains high. This clear inconsistency is why it is the view of my constituents that the premium that they pay in fuel prices cannot be from competitive market prices.”
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