Laurie Scott is pushing back against the proposed federal carbon tax.
The long-time Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock MPP took to social media to share the idea that the carbon tax is not the best course for Canadians, suggesting that it would be costly to all walks of life.
A carbon tax is exactly that, a tax on fuel and emissions. Ontario’s Premier Doug Ford has been against it since taking office.
In an interview with MyHaliburtonNow.com, Scott said “we talk about how a carbon tax is going to cost everybody, but we forget it’s going to cost our facilities,” she goes on to say “ so post-secondary educations for one, right?”.
Scott suggests that the burden of instituting the tax would affect everyone, saying that prices will go up because the carbon tax “is going to hit us in many forms”.
The Minister of Labour said if the carbon tax goes forward, it is not just individuals that will feel the effects. She says that institutions like hospitals, colleges, and businesses will be paying more just to keep the heat on.
Ontario has passed legislation to fight the federal government and Scott said, “other provinces are doing it also.”
“We’ve had lots of statistics, even from the Conference Board of Canada, that tax is going to be like a $3 billion hit to the economy,” said Scott. She believes that would hurt businesses across the country and locally as well.
Scott said, “we are trying to make life more affordable, and they are trying to put more taxes on.”
“Everybody has a responsibility, for sure, for the environment. But imposing a tax, that’s just going to cost everybody, is not the way to get to a cleaner environment.”
The province is currently working on the “Ontario Environment Plan” said Scott. She says the province is working towards meeting the federal government’s Paris Accord Deal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30 per cent by 2030.