The Trudeau Government is finding it more and more difficult to evade responsibility for their role in the rising cost of living.
When a government decides to be consistently dishonest, we have to find out the truth through the rare moments in which they clearly admit their plans.
And such a moment was provided by Steven Guilbeault:
“Environment minister Steven Guilbeault says global crises like the pandemic and the war in Ukraine will eventually go away but “climate change is killing people in Canada.”
He also says he opposes the province’s attempts to cut taxes to reduce the cost of fuel.”
Environment minister Steven Guilbeault says global crises like the pandemic and the war in Ukraine will eventually go away but “climate change is killing people in Canada.”
He also says he opposes the province’s attempts to cut taxes to reduce the cost of fuel. pic.twitter.com/aJdmUETDNc
— True North (@TrueNorthCentre) April 5, 2022
It is notable that after Guilbeault said he opposed provinces easing the burden of gas prices, the interviewer – perhaps assuming it was a gaffe – gave him a chance to confirm whether or not he opposed provinces reducing gas taxes.
Guilbeault doubled down.
He made it clear that he opposed gas tax reductions.
And, by saying that gas tax reductions went against the efforts of the federal government, Guilbeault confirmed that high gas prices are a deliberate goal of Trudeau government policy.
Are Canadians aware of this?
The reason to ask that question is because the Liberals have been very careful to try and have it both ways.
They’ve talked about how they are ‘fighting climate change’ with their policies, while also claiming to be concerned about the rise in cost-of-living.
After all, the Liberals claimed the carbon tax would provide a net financial benefit for the majority of Canadians, a claim which has been disproven by the Parliamentary Budget Officer:
“The latest findings from the Parliamentary Budget Officer are fuelling arguments that the federal price on carbon is an economic burden for families — and could only increase in years to come.
According to a report released on Thursday, PBO Yves Giroux concluded that most households in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario will see a “net loss” resulting from federal carbon pricing in 2030. By then, the carbon levy will have increased to reach $170 a tonne.
“The moment you decide to decarbonize the economy in a relatively short period of time — and we’re talking here less than 10 years to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions — it’s clear that there is going to be a cost,” said Giroux in an interview with the National Post.
As the carbon pricing increases, lower income households should continue to receive rebates, but middle-class and upper-class households should be expecting to pay hundreds, if not thousands according to the PBO, depending on their carbon consumption.”
Thus, we can see that Guilbeault’s remarks on gas taxes are merely the overt admission of the policy the Liberals have long been following.
The question now is whether Canadians are becoming fully aware of this.
Do Canadians realize that the Liberal government wants their gas prices to go up?
Do Canadians realize that the rising cost of living is the goal of Liberal policy?
And, do Canadians realize that the Liberal government has chosen to induce higher prices to change behaviour in order to ostensibly save the planet, rather than incentivize technological innovation?
That last point is essential.
There are two main ways to address climate change.
The carrot or the stick?
The first approach is to punish people financially. That’s the approach the Liberals have taken. The carbon tax and Guilbeault’s opposition to gas tax rebates is all about maintaining the punishment based approach. Guilbeault and the Liberal government want you to consume less, and they are trying to force you to do that by driving up prices.
It’s a coercive method that results in Canadians ending up poorer.
The second approach would be to incentivize technological innovation. As humans continue to advance and build upon the knowledge of previous generations, we become more efficient and are able to do more with less. This is already happening in much of the developed world, where economies have grown despite decreasing emissions – all without coercive government measures.
The Liberal government could have taken an approach based on positive incentives, such as providing large tax breaks to individual Canadians, families, and businesses to encourage investment in environmentally-friendly retrofits and technology. Additionally, the government could have provided large-scale financial support to research and development to help Canada advance more rapidly.
Such an approach would ensure that our country becomes more climate-friendly, without crushing key sectors of our economy and without burdening Canadians with higher and higher prices.
Unfortunately for Canadians, the Liberals have chosen the stick approach, rather than the carrot.
A big policy shift
At this point, it is now undeniable that the Liberals don’t intend to change course on these policies.
Regardless of how high inflation gets, and regardless of the inability of Canadians to keep up with the rising cost of living, the Liberals will push ahead with overtly ideological prices that make things worse.
Thus, for Canadians to gain some relief they will need to elect a government with significantly different policies.
This is part of the reason why the Canadian people deserve to have a clear choice presented to them in the next election.
A Conservative Party led by someone like Pierre Poilievre – who advocates removing the carbon tax and reducing the role of government – would provide Canadians with that clear choice.
We can see how this is a big factor in the large crowds Poilievre is drawing to his campaign events across the country. Many Canadians are seeing that the policies of the Liberal government have made their lives much worse financially, and are seeking a sense of hope and optimism for a better future.
Reality bites
Underlying all of this is the fact that – in the long run – reality will always win out over political propaganda and deception.
It was easy for the Liberals to find popular support for their punishment-based climate policies when the punishment was theoretical and when inflation was low. People could feel good about ‘saving the planet’ and they didn’t see much of a financial impact.
But now, the impact is being felt, and Canadians are watching their economic dreams slip away.
The Liberals are losing their ability to hide the true impact of their policies, and with Guilbeault openly acknowledging that the government wants higher gas prices the agenda of the Liberal government should be clear for all to see.
Spencer Fernando
Photo – YouTube
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