Poll: Canadians want lower gas taxes

TORONTO, May 14 (UPI) -- A poll of Canadians indicates 57 percent say they want federal taxes on gasoline rolled back and 50 percent said oil companies are making excessive profits.

The poll results by The Strategic Counsel for CTV News and The Globe and Mail newspaper were published as the average price of gas at the pumps rose 3.9 cents to $1.29 per liter -- the equivalent of $4.85 per gallon.

The price of gas is lower by at least $1 per gallon in the United States because of lower taxes, The Globe and Mail said.

The poll asked for opinions on why prices are soaring and 29 percent of respondents cited increasing demand from Asian countries, 14 percent said high government taxes and half blamed excessive oil company profits.

"Fairly or unfairly, oil companies perennially wear black hats with most consumers," the Strategic Counsel's Peter Donolo told CTV.

The poll of 1,000 people had a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points, the report said.