Wall falls short on NDP support for motion opposing carbon tax

Premier Brad Wall put forward a motion Monday that would see the government officially oppose the federal government’s plan impose a national carbon tax.

He was looking for support from the NDP Opposition, but it appears he won’t get it.

Wall’s hope was universal support of the motion would send a clear message to Ottawa that imposing a carbon price in Saskatchewan is not wanted.

The NDP, like Wall, has come out against about the federal government’s unilateral decision to impose a price on carbon; but were less than eager to give the premier’s alternative plan such a ringing endorsement.

The federal government is planning to put a price on carbon emissions, starting in 2018 at $10 a tonne before raising the price to $50 in 2022.

Beyond simply denouncing that plan, the motion also called for the support of Wall’s position on climate change, which was outlined in a white paper last week. Basically, Wall is calling for a three-pronged approach to climate change that would see investment in adapting to a changing climate and green technology, as well as an effort to reduce domestic emissions.

Asking the NDP to endorse Wall’s plan put New Democrats in a bit of an awkward spot.

What came next was an afternoon of political back and forth, as the NDP put forward an amendment to the motion.

The amendment called for the Legislative Assembly to implement a law passed by the Saskatchewan Party years ago that put a carbon levy in place for heavy emitters. The amendment also called for MLAs to condemn the premier “for his failure to address climate change after nearly a decade in power and for giving up Saskatchewan’s interests in our environment.”

It, like Wall’s original motion, also included a line about opposing the federal plan.

So, both parties agree that they should oppose the federal plan.

But what they agree on stops there.

The NDP isn’t going to endorse Wall’s climate change plan and the government isn’t going to condemn its own premier.

As the debate continued into the afternoon, Wall and NDP leader Trent Wotherspoon took turns politicking as they spoke to reporters.

“(The NDP are) trying to find a way to be partisan on this issue, to be contrarian, and this isn’t an issue for that,” said Wall.

Wotherspoon said his party’s amendments were to “show some good faith and some constructive leadership from Saskatchewan that we need to act on climate change” and suggested he was just as upset with the premier’s lack of leadership as he was with the federal plan to impose a price on the province.

A vote on the motion was delayed and so a decision is not expected until Tuesday.

Because Wall’s party holds a strong majority, it is likely the NDP amendment will be voted down.