NO DOUBT SPECULATORS and the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico are playing key roles in the skyrocketing price of crude oil and the soaring of retail gasoline prices locally to above $1 a litre. But greed and the total absence of competition among Canada’s Big Three oil companies is clearly also a factor.

So, too, is the collusion between Big Oil and our federal and provincial governments, which as of July 1 will both share in the largess every time pump prices rise.

Currently, Ontario motorists pay just under 30 cents per litre in federal and provincial taxes — a federal excise tax of 10 cents, a provincial tax of 14.7 cents and the 5% GST, which works out to slightly over five cents for regular-grade gasoline and diesel fuel.

But once the McGuinty Liberals impose the 13% Harmonized Sales Tax on vehicle fuels, the provincial take will soar more than 50 per cent, to nearly 23 cents a litre.

No similar situation exists in the United States, where both the federal and state taxes are based solely on the quantity purchased, the current average combined federal/state tax being about 12 cents a litre.

The current Canadian taxes, precious little of which go to improve our highways, add an extra 18 cents a litre in Ontario.

Local motorists paying about $1.02 a litre for regular gas might expect the average price at U.S. pumps to be about 84¢ a litre, or roughly $3.80 for the 3.78 L U.S. gallon.

Instead, the average retail price there this week, with the U.S. and Canadian dollars virtually at par, was still below $3.00 a gallon, and some pumps in Flint, Michigan were selling regular grade Monday at $2.73 — roughly 72 cents a litre.

Go figure!