Roundup: Pallister makes a gamble

Posted on by

Manitoba premier Brian Pallister announced yesterday that he was going to implement a carbon price after all – sort of. In a dare to the federal government, Pallister says he’ll stick with his originally planned $25/tonne price, and not raise it like he’s supposed with the rest of the country, but he would also reduce the province’s PST to compensate. Revenue neutrality can be a very good thing, but the point of having a common carbon price across the country is to have a level playing field so that provinces don’t undercut one another – which Pallister frequently ignores as he instead battles straw men about the efficacy of the province’s environmental plans (many of those mentioned having nothing to do with reducing GHGs).

While Pallister is confident that the Supreme Court of Canada will rule against the federal government on the upcoming carbon price challenges – which is a pretty risky gable to take – he’s daring the federal government to do what they said they would, which is to continue making up the federal carbon price with a separate carbon levy on top of the provincial one, which would continue to be rebated to taxpayers by the CRA. None of this makes much sense as a strategy other than the fact that it lets him proclaim that he’s lowered the PST in order to get the plaudits for that.

Meanwhile, here’s Dylan Robertson with some additional context:

Good reads:

  • In the face of demands he be more active on COVID-19, Justin Trudeau told a press conference that “knee-jerk reactions” won’t stop the spread, which experts confirm.
  • Marc Garneau was in Washington to help lead a multilateral Strategy for Safer Skies, in order to prevent future tragedies like the downing of PS752.
  • Navdeep Bains officially laid out the conditions by which the government expects mobile phone carriers to lower their rates by 25 percent, with a 2020 benchmark.
  • Cabinet has approved a $240 million settlement for a 132-year-old land claim by the Mohawks of Akwesasne.
  • The Mohawks of Kahnawake ended their rail blockade…and started a new one on a highway instead.
  • General Jonathan Vance is warning that Russia is posing an immediate threat thanks to advances in intercontinental rockets.
  • Another 235 Canadians are aboard a cruise ship being quarantined off the coast of California. The US has refused entry to more than 100 Canadians over virus fears.
  • Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Capital pulled out of a proposed Quebec LNG project, but the company says this doesn’t affect their plans or timelines.
  • The Supreme Court of Canada has declined to hear the appeal of the Trans Mountain Expansion cases, meaning the Federal Court of Appeal decision stands.
  • The Canadian Press’ Baloney Meter™ tests the assertion that the Liberals’ Middle Class™ tax cuts reduced poverty. (Spoiler: They did no such thing).
  • Jason Kenney is throwing his endorsement behind Erin O’Toole.
  • As Jason Kenney muses about more “direct investment” in the energy sector, here’s some historical context about what Peter Lougheed did in the 1970s.
  • BC’s finance minister, Carole James, has revealed that she has Parkinson’s, and won’t run again in the next election.
  • Jason Markusoff tries to divine what prompted Kenney’s endorsement of O’Toole, noting that there is a long-standing enmity between Kenney and MacKay.
  • Kevin Carmichael parses Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz’s comments about the direction of economy and plummeting oil prices thanks to COVID-19.
  • Caroline O’Neill puts some onus on media to do a better job of covering Indigenous issues and encourages them to come to the table better prepared.

Want more Routine Proceedings? Become a patron and get exclusive new content.

2 thoughts on “Roundup: Pallister makes a gamble”

  1. I would like to send Carole James my sincere sympathies on her diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease. As a former resident of Victoria but not in her riding, I was appreciative of her efforts to counter the sometimes mean policies of the “Liberal” party in BC. Many of their right wing actions did not benefit British Columbia and she tried diligently to soften the blow. The only criticism I have for her was, as leader of the NDP, she stated in no uncertain terms that her members of the legislature would not accept the new expanded pensions that the Liberals passed into law and yet within months,her party members accepted the new grandfathered pension benefits which she will receive when she leaves the legislature and will enjoy to the fullest.

  2. Oh, the irony that Peter the Great, the prodigal son and heir — er, airhead — apparent of Conservative unity, might be the catalyst for breaking Harper’s Frankenstein monster apart. Kamikaze Kudatah Kenney knows a thing or two about leadership contests, doesn’t he? Split that beast in two and Make Trudeau a Majority PM Again. Bring on the mass exodus, the Buffalo stampede. And dance by the light of the moon!

Comments are closed.