Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rises during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Wednesday, May 1, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean KilpatrickOTTAWA -- It was supposed to do the heavy lifting for Canada's greenhouse gas emissions targets.
The Tory leader has blamed the climate policy for driving up the cost of food and fuel, while dismissing or ignoring its purported benefits, including consumer rebates.Research suggests the Liberals may be fighting a losing battle, and some experts are urging policymakers to look for alternative policies to lower emissions, warning the threat of climate change is too dire to delay action.
The federal government's Canada Carbon Rebate is designed to compensate voters for the financial burden. According to the parliamentary budget officer, eight out of 10 families receive more in rebates than they pay in carbon taxes. "Our results indicate that, absent political messaging, rebates increase public support for carbon taxes in both countries by building support among lower income groups," the 2022 paper said.
Rhodes said some of her studies show that the more information people are provided about complex climate policies, the more confused they get. Mildenberger and Rhodes both said they recognize that the carbon tax is, theoretically speaking, the best choice for fighting climate change. Mildenberger is a proponent of U.S. President Joe Biden's approach, which relies heavily on government investments and subsidies in the green economy.
In a statement, Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault defended the carbon tax as the most "cost-effective and efficient" way to reduce emissions. He cited departmental work that suggests replacing the consumer and industrial carbon prices with subsidies would cost taxpayers billions more.