Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has refused requests to abandon the planned April 1 carbon tax hike despite seven premiers warning against the move.
Speaking in Calgary on Wednesday, Trudeau insisted "my job is not to be popular,” but “to do the right things for Canada now and … a generation from now.”
Earlier in the day, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she was “very hopeful” that “some solution” could be worked out with the hike.
She and Trudeau met for the first time since the summer on Wednesday.
The federal carbon price will be hiked to 17.6 cents per litre of gas and 15.25 cents per cubic metre of natural gas on April Fools' Day – but rebates will also be increased.
On Tuesday, the Liberal premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, Andrew Furey, added his name to the list of unhappy provincial leaders, bringing the total up to seven.
Trudeau, though, insisted the carbon tax is a “smart plan to price pollution.”
“Why are so many people still against [the tax]?” he asked. “Well, you know, that's a question we all have to ask.”
He added: “I can understand there’s a lot of political misinformation and disinformation about that. But every Canadian knows, particularly here in Alberta, that the impacts of climate change are real and the opportunities to innovate and build an economy of the future [...] is going to continue to mean good jobs for Albertans.”
The prime minister also said “right now, everyone is stressed out with the cost of living.”
It’s a “stressful time,” Trudeau explained, adding: “There are real challenges in the world right now. And one of the challenges everybody is seeing is climate change.”
This morning I met with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Following this meeting, I will be addressing media from Alberta's legislature. https://t.co/8yZsuR48vZ
— Danielle Smith (@ABDanielleSmith) March 13, 2024
The Liberal leader insisted “you can’t have a plan for the economy if you don’t have a plan to fight climate change.”
But he doesn’t want to employ the “heavy hand of government” to effect change, he said, preferring instead the “market-based solution” of the carbon tax.
Trudeau also said he has "tremendous faith" in Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault, despite recent calls for him to be fired.
The carbon tax policy has proved unpopular in recent months, with a poll in November last year finding that most Canadians want it to be abolished or reduced.
Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre has put his “axe the tax” catchphrase at the centre of his bid to become Canada’s next prime minister.
The policy came under particular scrutiny late last year when Trudeau announced a carbon tax carve-out for home heating oil.
British Columbia, like Quebec and the Northwest Territories, has its own carbon tax system.
As with the federal tax, however, BC’s rate will be increasing from $65 per tonne to $80 on April 1.
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