Environment Minister Catherine McKenna is berating Conservative MPs for sending information to constituents on how to file income taxes without mentioning the carbon tax rebates to which they may be entitled.
âCanadians deserve a lot better from politicians,â McKenna said in an interview with CTVâs Power Play. âThey deserve to know the facts.â
Earlier this week, she sent a letter to Conservative MPs from Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan -- provinces that have opposed the governmentâs so-called âtax on pollutionâ -- to relay her concerns about their sending information to Canadians without mentioning the rebates.
The government says that 90 per cent of all funds collected from the carbon tax will be given back to citizens of the provinces that repeal the tax in the form of a rebate.
McKenna added that Alberta premier-designate Jason Kenney, whose United Conservative Party toppled Rachel Notleyâs NDP government in Tuesdayâs provincial election, fails to understand that climate change is âas much an economic issue as an environmental issue.â
She noted that Alberta has seen insurance costs balloon after severe weather events â forest fires, droughts and floods â that may have been caused by climate change, so voters there understand better than most the costs of inaction.
Kenney roared to victory by tapping into a widespread sense of grievance and anxiety that has festered since global oil prices crashed in 2014, plunging the oil-rich province into a recession from which recovery has been slow.
He joins the premiers of Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and New Brunswick in opposing the federal governmentâs carbon tax and has promised to repeal it once he is sworn in.
âWe donât believe that punishing people for heating their homes during a cold winter or driving to work or buying their groceries is an environmental policy,â Kenney said in an interview with CTVâs Power Play.
He added that his government will be imposing a levy on major industrial emitters of greenhouse gases that will have a built-in âincentive for shrinking carbon intensity.â
Kenneyâs election is almost certain to make Prime Minister Justin Trudeauâs environmental policies an election issue. He has also taken issue with Bill C-69, the governmentâs pending legislation that overhauls the review process for major resource projects.
Kenney said he is prepared to use all of the âpolitical and legal toolsâ at his disposal to counter obstacles to pipeline construction and to âassert Albertaâs vital economic interests.â
He said that his campaign pledges to shut off the oil taps to neighbouring anti-pipeline British Columbia and to hold a referendum in 2021 on removing equalization from the Constitution if thereâs no progress on pipelines were not empty threats.
âIn Canada, the squeaky wheel gets the grease,â Kenney said. âThatâs what Quebec has shown us for 40 years. Itâs about time we were prepared to assert ourselves with similar strength.â
Kenneyâs comments came on the same day that the federal government announced that it is delaying its decision on the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project until June 18 â nearly a month after its original deadline â in order to complete consultations with Indigenous groups.
The federal government bought the pipeline, which would carry refined bitumen from Alberta to the B.C. coast and then to overseas markets, for $4.5 billion last year. But construction has been stalled since a federal appeals court judge said that the government failed to adequately consult with Indigenous groups and to conduct a proper environmental review.
âItâs frustrating to see all of the endless delays,â Kenney said, adding in a more conciliatory tone that he understands that the federal government has to satisfy requirements from the federal courts.
âQuite frankly, this project should have been shovels in the ground well over a year ago,â he said.