REGINA — The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is calling for Premier Scott Moe to keep Saskatchewan free of the industrial carbon tax.
This follows on the heels of news of the memorandum of understanding signing between Alberta and the federal government, which will see the effective carbon price set to $130 per tonne by 2040.
In a news release, the Taxpayers Federation raised alarm bells about a National Post report in which Moe said he was "open to the discussion about finding a place where that would work for the industries that are employing people here."
"What taxpayers are saying is that there is no workable place on charging Saskatchewanians an industrial carbon tax," said Gage Haubrich, CTF Prairie director.
Haubrich said Moe "needs to keep Saskatchewan carbon tax-free because Saskatchewan taxpayers can't afford to pay a carbon tax and all a carbon tax does is make life more expensive and make Saskatchewan businesses less competitive."
He pointed to polling that "shows that about 69 per cent of Saskatchewanians support keeping the province completely carbon tax-free and that basically makes sense, right?"
"The majority of Saskatchewanians know that when you put carbon taxes on a refinery, that makes gasoline more expensive. When you put carbon taxes on a fertilizer plant, that increases costs for farmers and then that goes to us at the grocery store."
Haubrich said what Moe "needs to do is what he's been doing for the last year, is keep the province carbon tax-free so we're not stuck in a situation like Alberta where we're going to see a six and a half times more expensive carbon tax in the next couple of years. So the Premier needs to stand firm against the feds and keep the province free of carbon taxes."
As for the deal between the federal government and Alberta, Haubrich characterized it as the federal government approaching Alberta to say "we will give you the promise of maybe a pipeline at some point in the future for the certainty of carbon tax hikes today."
"We think that's a bad deal for taxpayers because the only certain thing that they're getting out of that deal is a carbon tax hike, while maybe getting a pipeline in the future. And it's likely the case that since the federal government has approached Alberta with that deal and they signed it, that Saskatchewan is probably next on that chopping block, so we're reiterating our call to the Premier what taxpayers want, and what taxpayers want is no carbon taxes in Saskatchewan."
He said removing the industrial carbon tax saves Saskatchewanians "about $112 a year on their power bills directly, about $330 a year for farms."
Haubrich also noted among the "biggest things that isn't counted in dollars and cents is how much it makes our industries more competitive compared to other places."
"Because if you're a company looking for a place to invest and you're choosing either Saskatchewan or North Dakota, if Saskatchewan has a carbon tax, you're much more likely to choose North Dakota. So by the province cutting that carbon tax, it makes it a much more intriguing place for investment for companies and that means more Saskatchewan jobs and that means a more affordable life."
When Moe announced the province was the first in Canada to remove the industrial carbon tax, he had pointed to campaign commitments made by the major parties toward the same thing. Haubrich thinks what the federal government is doing now should not matter.
"I think that it was a good idea for taxpayers a year ago and it continues to be a good idea for taxpayers today," Haubrich said of taking off the carbon tax. "I think that the Premier shouldn't necessarily just look at what the federal government wants to be done, but rather the best move for his taxpayers and the best move for the Premier's taxpayers is to keep Saskatchewan carbon tax-free and not have Saskatchewanians have to pay that harmful, costly tax."
Haubrich also said that with the vast majority of Saskatchewan residents believing the province should be carbon tax-free, he called it "something that people across the political spectrum in the province support."
As for Prime Minister Mark Carney and his government, Haubrich said they want him to cancel the industrial carbon tax as well "because it costs people just the same, even if it has different names."
"In an ideal world, we're looking to the prime minister to finally cut that industrial carbon tax as well, but until that happens, we're still going to be calling on the premier to stand firm and say no to the federal government when they come knocking and ask to put on another carbon tax."
Meanwhile, the opposition New Democrats have also been putting pressure on the government on the industrial carbon tax. On Monday in a news release, the NDP called for the government to release full details of any discussions with the federal government on an industrial carbon pricing framework, as well as to "explain why the provincial budget includes industrial carbon tax-related revenues and receivables despite repeated public denials" and "clarify when cabinet first began discussing a Saskatchewan industrial carbon pricing system after claiming previously it was being abolished."
