Environment Minister Stephen Guilbeault said Ottawa must take action against Saskatchewan for violating federal carbon pricing laws.
Premier Scott Moe said last week that Saskatchewan will not submit its required carbon price obligations for natural gas on Feb. 29.
Moe is protesting the City of Ottawa’s decision to exempt heating oil from the tax, but not natural gas, which is used by eight out of 10 homes in Saskatchewan.
Under the law, fuel distributors such as SaskEnergy are required to submit monthly reports on the amount of fuel sold and the price of carbon recovered from that fuel.
Failure to submit these reports or pay the outstanding amount will result in consequences such as fines or imprisonment depending on the amount outstanding.
Guilbeault said it was “immoral” and “irresponsible” for the prime minister to decide not to follow the law.
“If Premier Scott Moe decides he doesn’t want to respect federal law and wants to start breaking federal law, then we need to take action,” Guilbeault said in response to a reporter’s question.
“We can’t allow that to happen. What happens tomorrow if somebody decides they don’t want to respect other federal laws or criminal laws? So what happens if the prime minister or the premier of a state wants to respect that? ” ” he continued.
“It’s irresponsible and frankly immoral on his part. We can disagree about things like climate change, but something this reckless is truly unspeakable.”
Prime Minister Scott Moe started the morning by outlining the government’s labor market strategy as thousands of teachers picketed outside parliament. It was an unofficial kickoff to the first day of the roundtable, and we ended up returning to a familiar discussion.
On Monday, Moe reiterated that the federal carbon pricing law should be repealed.
“It’s causing inflation and we’re still paying a lot of money in other areas. The Government of Saskatchewan’s position is, and will continue to be, that it should be removed for all products, for all people. ” said Mo.
Sask. Energy Minister Dustin Duncan said last week that he was aware the government’s decision could have repercussions, but said it was made from an equity perspective.
“This is not something we take lightly,” Duncan said on Feb. 29.
Last fall, the federal Liberals moved to give heating oil a three-year moratorium on carbon pricing, but households using heating oil need more time and financial support to replace oil furnaces with electric heat pumps. He claimed that.
Heating oil was about three times more expensive than natural gas before carbon pricing, but oil prices have increased by more than 50% in recent years, creating an economic incentive to replace heating oil without adding an additional carbon price.
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has agreed to a request from the Saskatchewan government to appoint it as the province’s natural gas distributor, rather than SaskEnergy, the province’s Crown corporation. The decision comes as Saskatchewan continues to resist the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (GGPPA), a federal law that requires it to collect a federal carbon tax.
Federal government data shows 1.2 million Canadian households still use heating oil, nearly a quarter of them in Atlantic Canada. Only 3% of them are in the three Prairie states.
The Liberal Party performed poorly in the East Coast polls and was accused of making decisions based on politics. The ruling party has fewer seats in the Prairie region but a majority in the Atlantic region.
It may take some time before results are known.
Saskatchewan has been very public about missed payments, but for privacy reasons, the Canada Revenue Agency says that if a particular customer doesn’t submit a payment by the due date, even if the provincial government Even if there is, I don’t check it.
The CRA has a compliance process for seeking payment or documentation before going to court.
Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said last week that one result would be a reduction in carbon rebates sent to Saskatchewan households.
The rebates are based on the amount collected in each state and are reduced if less money is collected, he said.
