The Manitoba government has confirmed it intends to ask Ottawa to remove the carbon tax from the province.
A news release issued by the Conservative Party after Thursday’s meeting with Manitoba’s premier and federal Opposition Leader Pierre Poièvre thanked Wab Kinew for calling on Ottawa to eliminate the backstop. .
But Kinew has only said so far that the province should be exempt from the residential heating tax and that his government will continue to insist Manitoba doesn’t need a backstop.
The premier’s office told CBC News on Thursday that while Kinew has not formally asked the Fed to remove the backstop, the Manitoba government is indeed working on the proposal and the City of Ottawa is aware of it. he said.
The carbon tax, also known as the carbon price, went into effect in 2019 at $20 per tonne. Prices have increased in the years since and are scheduled to rise from $65 to $80 a ton on Monday.
The increase will increase prices by 3.3 cents per liter of gasoline and 2.9 cents per cubic meter of natural gas. The carbon rebate sent to households every three months has also been increased.
The federal “backstop” carbon price is imposed by Ottawa on provinces that have not developed their own carbon price plans that meet or exceed the federal plan.People in these states receive federal aid carbon rebate payment As compensation.
Carbon taxes are intended to provide an economic incentive for people and businesses to change their habits to reduce the burning of fossil fuels and move to more environmentally friendly forms of energy instead. For example, a homeowner might make changes to save on heating or install a heat pump, or a driver might switch to an electric car.
Kinew said at a March 13 press conference that the state “continues to insist that there is no need to apply the backstop.”
Asked at the press conference whether a formal request had been made, the Prime Minister replied, “Who’s to say they haven’t?”
Kinew also said at the time that the government’s conversations with Ottawa would be private “until a decision is made to make them public.”
“I think we have ongoing constructive engagement with the federal government on this issue,” Kinew said at a news conference earlier this month. “There are indications that Manitoba is willing to reconsider the backstop once we present a formal plan. So we will continue to advocate for that.”
In the fall, Manitoba’s premier also called on Ottawa to eliminate the carbon tax on home heating.
Mr. Kinew has expressed concerns about a carbon tax in recent months, but his opposition has not been as vehement as some.
Seven of Canada’s prime ministers recently wrote a letter calling for a moratorium on the planned April 1 carbon tax hike. Kinew did not participate.
Mr. Poilievre, who has made repealing the carbon tax one of his key political messages, was not bothered by Mr. Kinew’s calm approach.
“He’s not working for me, he’s working for the people of Manitoba… He doesn’t need my satisfaction,” Poièvre told reporters.
Mr. Poilievre went on to praise the province’s interim gas tax cut, saying the environmental benefits from a carbon tax are small compared to the value of Manitoba’s hydroelectric grid.
Economist says carbon tax is unfairly destructive
Gregory Mason, an associate professor of economics at the University of Manitoba, is one of dozens of Canadian academics who published an open letter this week defending the carbon tax in the face of growing opposition.
He said it was disappointing that the tax’s “intent, which was meant to encourage people to use greener transport options, was being undermined by critics”. He also pointed out that Canadians receive quarterly rebate checks to offset the cost of pollution.
Mr Mason said the rising cost of living should not be blamed on the carbon tax.
“I don’t think inflation can happen.” [blamed on] “The carbon tax is accelerating inflation more than the fact that property taxes went up this year,” he said in an interview.
1,500 people at Winnipeg rally
Shortly after meeting Kinew, Mr. Poilievre joined the cross-country “Spike the Hike – Ax the Tax” rally tour, heading to the RBC Convention Center in downtown Winnipeg.
Some in the crowd of about 1,500 held placards calling for an end to the carbon tax, while others wore Poilievre merchandise, including T-shirts with the tagline “WTF: Where’s the money?” there was.
Wayne Whelan said he had never attended a political rally before Thursday’s event.
“I joined the Conservative Party specifically to vote for Pierre Poièvre, because he’s a foil for the Conservative Party.” [Prime Minister Justin] Prime Minister Trudeau,” said Whelan, who attended with his wife, Christina.
He said he was tired of the controversy that dogged the Liberal Party, from political interference in the SNC and Lavalin affair to the price tag on the Trudeau family’s vacation.
College student Alyssa Sanchi said she tends to be politically conservative. She attended the rally to get a true picture of Poièvre’s approach to politics, in contrast to the short clips of her she had seen online.
“I feel like social media is really extremely polarizing when it comes to politics, but it doesn’t have to be that way,” she said.
In a roughly 45-minute speech, Poilievre slammed the carbon tax, the lack of affordable housing and the inability of immigrant doctors and nurses to work in their fields in Canada.
He again referred to Churchill Port as an undeveloped asset. He had previously hinted at the possibility of shipping oil through the port.
Poièvre also pointed to Winnipeg’s Parker Land Development as an example of a “gatekeeper” blocking housing construction near transit stations.
City council is set to consider another proposal for a 19-hectare triangle of Fort Garry land after 11 years of planning and delays that resulted in two lawsuits.
