Lorne Gunter: UCP government finally does what it should have done months ago — cut the gas tax

Advertisement 1 This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Breadcrumb Trail Links HomePoliticsOpinionColumnists Lorne Gunter: UCP government finally does what it should have done months ago — cut the gas tax The province's decision to — finally — cut the gas tax is a couple of months too late, but better late than never Author of the article: By Lorne Gunter Published Sep 23, 2026 Last updated 21 minutes ago 3 minute read Join the conversation Premier Danielle Smith along with Finance Minister Jason Nixon and Affordability and Utilities Minister RJ Sigurdson announce a new affordability measure to help Albertans and families manage the high cost of living in Calgary on June 17, 2026. PHOTO BY DARREN MAKOWICHUK /Postmedia Article content Hallelujah! The provincial government has finally decided to do the right thing by Alberta drivers and remove the provincial gasoline tax until the end of the year. Article content From October 1 to December 31, the price of a litre of gasoline or diesel will go down by 13 cents. It should have been happening all summer, but better late than never. Article content Article content Since the price of a barrel of the benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude was trading at over US$90 throughout most of the spring, the full 13-cent-a-litre provincial gasoline and diesel tax should have come off from July 1 to September 30, too. Article content Article content Instead, the UCP government in a fit of bureaucratic delirium, decided to give everyone a rebate – everyone, that is, who could crack the code of the application process and who didn’t mind providing a ream of personal financial information through a government web portal. Article content Headline News Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns. Sign Up By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Article content As I have written many times this past summer, the Alberta Energy Rebate was a colossal flop. Only about a third of eligible Albertans successfully received their tiddly $100 government payment. Article content Thankfully, Premier Danielle Smith and her government have decided not to repeat their mistake this fall. Article content Article content Government sources confide that the primary reason the gas tax was not removed during the summer is that at the time the decision had to be made the Smith government was facing a…