PM’s climate plan ‘unconstitutional,’ Ontario PCs say
Legal arguments submitted to Court of Appeal part of Ford’s $30M bid against carbon pricing
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s imposition of a national price on carbon to reduce greenhouse gas emissions would “seriously disrupt the balance of powers set out in the Constitution,” argues Premier Doug Ford’s government.
In legal arguments filed Friday with the Ontario Court of Appeal, the province contends it would be “unconstitutional” for Ottawa to introduce the measure next year.
“There is no need to dramatically expand the scope of federal jurisdiction to allow Parliament to impose its preferred method of combating greenhouse gas emissions on the provinces,” the provincial government said.
The 41-page factum, bolstered by more than 400 pages of appendices, maintains the levies in the federal legislation are “neither valid regulatory charges nor valid taxation.”
It is the latest salvo in Ford’s $30-million legal crusade against Trudeau’s carbon-pricing plan. Saskatchewan and New Brunswick are also fighting the federal proposal.
“The extremely wide variety of activities that give rise to greenhouse gas emissions lack the singleness, distinctiveness and indivisibility that must be present before the federal government can regulate a matter under the national concern doctrine,” the factum said.
Provincial Environment Minister Rod Phillips noted, “Ontario is already doing its part and our families, workers, and businesses have already sacrificed a lot.”
“Most of Canada’s progress toward meeting its greenhouse gas emission targets is due to action Ontario has taken without having to resort to a jobkilling carbon tax,” said Phillips, who tabled the province’s climate plan Thursday.
“There is no justification to punish them further with a carbon tax,” he said.
Federal Environment Minister Catherine McKenna said, “A court challenge isn’t a substitute for a serious climate plan.”
“Climate change is a crisis. We have jurisdiction. Pollution doesn’t know any borders,” McKenna said in an interview.
“This is clearly an issue of national concern,” she said, noting the prime minister will be discussing it with the premiers at the first ministers’ meeting in Montreal next Friday. Under Trudeau’s plan, the average Ontario household will pay $244 more annually on gasoline, natural gas, and home heating oil, but will receive $300 back in rebates for a net gain of $56 a year.
The proceeds will be bankrolled by carbon-polluting industries.
Ontario had been exempted from the federal carbon scheme because it was in a cap-and-trade alliance with California and Quebec that brought in $1.9 billion annually to provincial coffers to fund environmental initiatives.
But the Tories extricated Ontario from the pact, exposing the province to the federal plan to put a price on carbon emissions.
“Climate change is a crisis. We have jurisdiction. Pollution doesn’t know any borders.” CATHERINE MCKENNA FEDERAL ENVIRONMENT MINISTER