There are times to fight, times to back away and times to not engage in a fight in the first place.
The provincial government has found itself in the former situation in its dispute with the federal government over a carbon tax. The federal government wants to force a carbon tax on Saskatchewan.
The province argues that it should be the one to decide whether a carbon tax should be imposed, and it points to its made-in-Saskatchewan climate change plan as proof that it can combat climate change without a carbon tax.
So the province has decided to take the feds to court to challenge the carbon tax. Regardless of whether the provincial government wins, this is the right move.
A carbon tax would have a detrimental impact on Saskatchewan as a whole, and southeast Saskatchewan in particular. It would hurt oil and gas, mining, agriculture and other industries in the province.
The punitive effects on agriculture would be particularly ironic, since this province’s farmers have long been taking measures to actually reduce carbon emissions.
A carbon tax would represent another setback for the oil and gas sector, which has been hit hard since 2014 by a lower price of oil. While the picture is rosier for the industry than it was three years ago, the industry is still in recovery mode.
It would also hurt Saskatchewan’s competitiveness in the energy sector. Give an energy company a choice between investing in Saskatchewan, which would have a carbon tax, and North Dakota, which doesn’t have one, and we know where they will direct their money.
Those who support the carbon tax do not have the best interests of the province in mind on this particular issue.
We’ve seen in other jurisdictions that carbon taxes don’t result in emissions reductions. All they do is take money out of people’s pockets, and boost government revenues. The carbon tax is a contributing factor to the high gasoline prices in B.C. at the moment.
It’s unlikely that Saskatchewan will win this court battle. But this is still one of those times that the province has to stand up for the people of this province, even if there is a considerable cost associated with that legal fight.
Saskatchewan’s carbon tax fight will be monitored by other jurisdictions. Ontario has imposed a cap-and-trade scheme, but the governments responsible for that system appears to be headed for defeat in a provincial election next month.
If the Progressive Conservatives seize power in Ontario, then it’s expected they will scrap the cap-and-trade. Using the federal Liberals logic, Ontario would have to accept a carbon tax, unless, of course, Saskatchewan wins its legal fight against the federal government.
You can also be sure the United Conservative Party in Alberta will be monitoring this situation, since they would scrap that province’s carbon tax if they’re elected next year.
Let the provinces decide whether a carbon tax is in their best interests. If they believe it is, then they should impose one. If they don’t, then they should be looking for other avenues to combat climate change.
The federal government might think it knows what’s best for Saskatchewan, but when it comes to a carbon tax, they don’t have a clue.
