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You have run a few articles regarding the carbon tax on the heels of Mr. Pierre Poilievre's House of Commons antics.
He has been successful in bringing the issue to the forefront such that I questioned the mechanism in play myself seeking to understand it.
He has been somewhat disingenuous in that he made no or little reference to the rebates 70 per cent of Canadians receive. Of course, he may be referring to the 30 per cent or so who don't receive a rebate.
This makes perfect sense in that he is the leader of the Conservative Party. His objective is to conserve the wealth in terms of income and the worth of his flock. I don't expect any less from his playbook.
In my case, as a retired couple we have received $470 in rebates in 2024 year-to-date. That more than covers the carbon surcharge on gas fill-ups. What is unclear to me is the carbon tax component on natural gas or, by extension, heating our home or water. That unknown aside, I am in favour of the carbon tax approach as a consumer and citizen.
I also believe in climate change thus climate action must be taken.
How is the agricultural sector treated with respect to the carbon tax? Are they entitled to industry sector rebates?
One of your articles referenced the cost of $4,500 to dry grain. Was that cost entirely made up of carbon tax or was that 95 per cent energy consumption and five per cent tax?
To keep it simple, if it was five per cent against the total of $4,500 then the tax surcharge was worth $225. What are the facts? What is the net cost expressed as a number or percentage of tax to actual consumption of any energy commodity?
I think we should keep in mind that B.C. and Quebec have their own carbon tax programs. The B.C. tax is currently higher than the federal carbon tax as is Quebec's at 10 cents per litre.
The problem is, the government has not managed the communication well. People need to see and understand the link between the carbon tax inflow and the rebate outflow addressing how the surplus is being allocated to green conversions from electric vehicles and heat pumps to industrial-scale technologies.
Otherwise, it just looks like a tax grab.
Pierre G. Tousignant
The Blue Mountains
