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A second Prime Minister Trudeau has stated he will impose an ultimatum on the provinces. This latest salvo is to set a tax on carbon, or he will do it for them.

 

Ironically, during the 2015 election campaign, the Liberals declared they would work in partnership with the provinces, and dismissed any idea of unfairly imposing a plan on the provinces as ‘nonsensical’.

 

Now less than a year later, the Prime Minister has told premiers he will be imposing a “floor price” on carbon of $10 a tonne in 2018, rising to $50 a tonne by 2022, whether they agree or not.

 

As Saskatchewan Environment Minister Scott Moe put it following the October 3 announcement, “Today is not a good day for federal-provincial relations.”

 

This massive new tax will have a large trickle-down effect and will ultimately increase everything from the cost of your grocery bill to the price you pay at the pumps, and unfortunately, middle and lower-income families, as well as seniors in Canada will be hurt the most.

 

While the Official Opposition supports the climate targets first proposed by Prime Minister Harper, now adopted by the Liberals, a massive carbon tax grab imposed on Canadians will not achieve our climate change goals.

 

Imposing a punishing new tax while holding back approval on job-creating pipeline projects shows how misplaced this government’s priorities are when it comes to jobs and economic growth. Internationally, this new tax will put Canada at a disadvantage when it comes to trade, with devastating new costs being put on Canadian farmers, manufacturers, and businesses that are the backbone of the Canadian economy.

 

The Prime Minister promised a new-era of cooperative federalism; instead he’s using a sledge hammer to force provinces and territories to impose a massive tax grab on their citizens.

 

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