Defending Canadian jobs
Re: Study boosts Liberal carbon tax plan, John Ivison, Sept. 20
John Ivison quotes what he calls a game changer for carbon tax — referencing a new study from Canadians for Clean Prosperity that says carbon taxes will put more money in the pockets of most Canadians. As my kids always say, “Wait, what?” Is this group honestly telling me that the government is going to tax me more so that I can have more money?
Ivison’s article points out that the Clean Prosperity study shows that carbon tax will be added to the cost of many things but that Canadians will then get it back in a rebate from the federal government. Well, if that is true, then why take the tax at all?
The article then goes on to explain that in fact it will be businesses that will have to pay this tax. Well, let’s take a closer look at how that works. Here are some facts on businesses in Canada. According to Statistics Canada, over 92 per cent of businesses in Canada employ 100 people or fewer. In Ontario these businesses have been hammered in the past decade on energy and environment taxes and laws — they now pay three times the going North American rates for hydroelectricity, and they have huge energybased debt. The list goes on though, and companies are at the breaking point. The result? We have made Ontario uncompetitive for business. Many companies have been lured south of the border with an impressive list of tax breaks, incentives and a welcoming business attitude. Others have just scaled back or shutdown. A new government in Ontario is trying to change things, but a lot of damage has been done. And the federal government’s approach? More of the same bad policy.
When we started the Coalition of Concerned Manufacturers we did so because we were concerned that the ideologues were running the show. We were concerned that policies like carbon taxes hurt Canadians, killed jobs and did little for the environment, and people in charge didn’t care. When you realize that Canada contributes less than two per cent to global greenhouse gases and that our energy systems are some of the cleanest, most modern, best regulated in the world you are left wondering what could possibly motivate policy makers to double down on the damaging stuff. The coalition set out to make sure that everyday Canadians understood how these policies would affect them and ensure that policies were made on facts, and studies were not twisted into a pretzel to support some obsession with some ideological views.
Who will benefit from a carbon tax? We know governments will. Clean Prosperity’s Mark Cameron noted on CBC that “the government’s going to decide what to do with that money.” Well, that has certainly worked to date, hasn’t it? (See Ontario, above). Governments will utilize these taxes for pet projects to support their insatiable appetite for yet more government action. Some large corporations will benefit because they get credits for new equipment. This is equipment that small companies like mine will pay for through our carbon taxes. Other beneficiaries will be special-interest groups that will apply for grants under the guise of environmental action.
When the Coalition first spoke out against carbon pricing, one government official told me, “instead of fighting carbon pricing why don’t you figure out how to make money off of it?” That would be the easy way but not the best for the economy. What is the result of these policies? Companies will end up growing outside of Canada, while Canadian companies close and Canadians lose their jobs and see the cost of living rise. But Canadians for Clean Prosperity say that’s OK because so many will get a rebate cheque on the carbon tax. I think most people would prefer a job to a drink of this Kool-Aid. The recent Ontario election showed that’s how Ontarians feel. Let’s hope the rest of the country feels the same way. We’ve just changed our Coalition from being Ontario-focused to become national. We, for one, are going to stick up for jobs and the future of the country. We are doing this so that our employees can prosper and our children will have jobs.
WE DON’T THINK MUCH ABOUT HOW EXPOSED WE ARE.
— JOHN ROBSON