Energy Minister Andrew Parsons says there’s little the government can do about the rising price of gasoline. But he says better public relations from the Public Utilities Board wouldn’t go astray.

The PUB is responsible for setting the price of fuels in the province. It also signed off on the subsidy to import fuels while the Come By Chance refinery remains offline. That subsidy accounts for about 5 cents of the current price of gas in the province.

Parsons says the onus is on the PUB to keep the public in the loop.

He says if anything, the Public Utilities Board could be do a much better job of explaining why prices are where they are now, adding it’s not clear how long the subsidy will apply or when the PUB might review its status.

Parsons acknowledges higher oil prices are just what the doctor ordered to eat into the province’s staggering deficit. But he adds that’s cold comfort for everyone—including him—who still has to suck it up at the pumps.

Parsons notes the province reduced the gas tax from 16.5 to 14.5 cents a litre last year.