We Need a Carbon Tax, We Need Progressive Conservatives
Eric Rempel, Blog Coordinator
Advocate, South Eastman Transition Initiative
Last week the Trudeau government announced that it would continue to increase the carbon tax as a strategy for reducing the Canadian contribution to Greenhouse Gases and thus to climate change. This was long overdue. Anyone with any interest in sustainable living, must know that the prime purpose of the carbon tax is not to raise tax revenue, but to change habits – to change our lifestyle.
The current carbon tax results in a seven cent a litre increase in our gasoline price – not enough to affect anybody’s driving habits. The projection is that the new carbon tax will increase our gasoline price by $0.40 per litre by 2030, a price that is more likely to affect our driving habits. But this tax is still not enough to adequately change behaviour. And this is what the official opposition should be saying. But it isn’t.