Business
Taxpayers Federation urging Ontario to join Alberta’s carbon tax court fight
From the Canadian Taxpayers Federation
By Jay Goldberg
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is calling on Ontario Premier Doug Ford to join the Alberta government and constitutionally challenge against the federal carbon tax.
“Ford has rightly opposed the federal carbon tax for years, but now he has a new chance to beat it in court,” said Jay Goldberg, CTF Ontario Director. “Last time the carbon tax fight went to the Supreme Court, the federal government argued it needed a national carbon tax to deal with a national problem. But then it undercut its own argument for a national carbon tax by making an exception for furnace oil, which clearly favours Atlantic Canada.
“Trudeau torpedoed his own constitutional argument for imposing a carbon tax so it’s time to challenge it in court again.”
Today, the Alberta government announced it has filed an application at the federal court challenging the constitutionality of the carbon tax in the wake of the federal government’s heating oil carbon tax exemption.
Last year, the federal government announced it is removing the carbon tax from heating oil for three years, but did not exempt other forms of home heating energy.
The carve-out disproportionately helps Atlantic Canadians. Only two per cent of Ontario households use furnace oil to heat their homes.
The average Ontario home uses 2,497 cubic metres of natural gas per year. That means removing the current federal carbon tax would save the average home about $381 this year.
“When Trudeau announced his heating oil carve out, he admitted the carbon tax makes life more expensive, he admitted the carbon tax is all about politics and he left the vast majority of Canadians out in the cold,” Goldberg said. “Ford needs to take this new opportunity to join other provinces and fight the carbon tax in court.”
A recent Leger poll commissioned by the CTF shows 60 per cent of Ontarians want the federal government to remove the carbon tax from all heating fuels.
Smith right to fight carbon tax in court
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation applauds Alberta Premier Danielle Smith for launching a renewed constitutional challenge against the federal carbon tax.
“The carbon tax is making the necessities of life in Alberta more expensive and that’s why Smith is right to take Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s carbon tax back to court,” said Franco Terrazzano, CTF Federal Director. “Last time the carbon tax fight went to the Supreme Court, the federal government argued it needed a national carbon tax to deal with a national problem. But then it undercut its own argument for a national carbon tax by making an exception for furnace oil, which clearly favours Atlantic Canada.
“Trudeau torpedoed his own constitutional argument for imposing a carbon tax so it’s time to challenge it in court again.”
Today, the Alberta government announced it has filed an application at the federal court challenging the constitutionality of the carbon tax in the wake of the federal government’s home heating oil exemption.
Writing in the National Post, the CTF called on all premiers to launch a new legal challenge against the federal carbon tax.
Last year, the federal government announced it is removing the carbon tax from furnace oil for three years, but did not exempt other forms of home heating energy. Less than one per cent of Alberta households use heating oil.
The average Alberta home uses about 2,935 cubic metres of natural gas per year, according to Statistics Canada. That means scrapping the current federal carbon tax would save the average Alberta home about $440 this year.
“Taxpayers are taking it on the chin every time we pay our heating bills and Trudeau is torpedoing constitutional accountability with his unequal application of the carbon tax,” Terrazzano said. “When Trudeau announced his heating oil carve out, he admitted the carbon tax makes life more expensive, he admitted the carbon tax is all about politics and he left the vast majority of Canadians out in the cold.”
A recent Leger poll commissioned by the CTF shows 70 per cent of Albertans want the federal government to remove the carbon tax from all heating fuels.
Business
Canada Suddenly Says It’ll Buy More US Products After Trump Threatened To Slap It With Tariffs
From the Daily Caller News Foundation
By Owen Klinsky
Canada’s ambassador to the United States said Monday the country is prepared to purchase more U.S. goods following President-elect Donald Trump’s tariff threats.
Trump has repeatedly lamented the trade deficit between the U.S. and its neighbor to the north, threatening to levy a 25% tariff against the country or even annex Canada and make it “the 51st state.” His remarks appear to have already impacted trade relations, with Canada’s Ambassador Kirsten Hillman saying the country is ready to buy more from the United States in order to appease the incoming president, according to an interview she gave to The Associated Press Monday.
“He has a negotiating style which involves positioning himself in the best way he can for discussions,” Hillman told the AP. “We are happy to source what we can from the United States.”
Hillman identified military procurements as a potential category where Canada could increase its consumption of U.S. products, including Canada’s next fleet of submarines: “We have some big military procurements coming up for example, replacing our entire submarine fleet. Maybe those are some purchases that can happen from the U.S.”
The U.S. had a nearly $68 billion trade deficit with Canada in 2023, a decrease of $12.2 billion from 2022, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The overall U.S. trade deficit sat at over $770 billion in 2023 — the highest of any country globally.
The ambassador also gave Trump credit for the creation of Canada’s $1 billion-plus border security and immigration plan: “We have moved really quickly, I’ll be honest, because President Trump focused the mind to put together a full package of improvements.”
Border patrol agents apprehended almost 24,000 individuals along the northern border in fiscal year 2024, representing a 140% increase from the year prior, data from the U.S. Customs And Border Protection shows.
“President Trump has promised tariff policies that protect working Americans from the unfair practices of foreign companies and foreign markets,” Trump-Vance Transition Spokesman Brian Hughes told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “As he did in his first term, he will implement economic and trade policies to make life affordable and more prosperous for our nation, while simultaneously leveling the playing field for American manufacturers.”
The Canadian embassy did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
From the Daily Caller News Foundation
By Owen Klinsky
The Net Zero Asset Managers (NZAM) coalition — a United Nations–sponsored collection of financial services companies that have pledged to negate their portfolio’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 or sooner — suspended activities after investment firm BlackRock announced its departure from the group, according to a press release.
BlackRock, which manages more than $10 trillion and has been a leader in environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing, announced its exit from NZAM Thursday, with its Vice-Chair Philipp Hildebrand saying the firm’s involvement in the environmental coalition “caused confusion regarding BlackRock’s practices and subjected us to legal inquiries from various public officials.” Now, NZAM has pressed pause altogether, halting operations while it conducts a review of its activities, an NZAM press release published Monday said.
JUST IN: The UN-backed Net Zero Asset Managers (NZAM) group has announced that it will be shutting down completely, following @BlackRock‘s departure. pic.twitter.com/o5htgvFEiH
— Will Hild (@WillHild) January 13, 2025
A slew of other financial services had left NZAM prior to BlackRock’s Thursday exit, including Goldman Sachs Group, Wells Fargo & Co., Citigroup, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase & Co. BlackRock’s exit came amid a broader corporate strategy shift away from ESG investing, with the firm only supporting about 4% of the 493 environmental and social investment proposals that shareholders put forward between the end of June 2023 and the end of June 2024, down from a rate of 47% in 2021.
BlackRock was a major supporter of ESG investing in years prior, with CEO Larry Fink saying in 2020 that “climate risk is investment risk” and that climate change would lead to a “fundamental reallocation of capital.”
“The destruction of NZAM is a huge win for consumers,” Will Hild, executive director of the conservative nonprofit Consumers’ Research, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Although there is a lot of work left to be done, what was effectively a cartel of asset managers has finally ceased taking the focus of businesses off of consumers, raising prices for everyday Americans everywhere from the gas pump to the grocery store.”
When reached for comment, NZAM referred the Daily Caller News Foundation to its press release.
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