Despite Saskatchewan’s Court of Appeal ruling Friday that a federally imposed carbon tax is constitutional, Manitoba plans to carry on with its Federal Court appeal of the plan.
The Saskatchewan Party government had asked the court for its opinion on the levy that came into effect April 1 in provinces without a carbon price of their own.
“We stand by our challenge of the federal government’s decision to impose a carbon tax on Manitobans,” said Justice Minister Cliff Cullen in an emailed statement. “The conduct by the federal government is unfair to Manitobans. It threatens jobs and economic growth throughout our province.”
In documents filed in Federal Court last month, the Manitoba government was seeking a judicial review to quash the federal tax on the grounds it exceeds Ottawa’s constitutional authority.
On April 1, the federal government imposed on Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Ontario and New Brunswick its own tax of $20 per tonne and rising to $50 per tonne by 2022 after those provinces refused federal Liberal demands to enact their own carbon levies.
In his email, Cullen said the province received legal advice last year that while the federal government has the constitutional power to impose a carbon tax, it can only do so on provinces that do not implement plans of their own. The province argues that the Made-in-Manitoba Climate and Green Plan is better for Manitoba’s economy, and better for the environment.
Under the Made-in-Manitoba plan, the province was to impose a price of $25 per tonne that would not rise which was rejected by the federal government.
“We have filed for a judicial review not just on constitutional grounds but also on the grounds that Canada acted unfairly by rejecting our plan despite granting special treatment and exemptions to other provinces,” said Cullen. “Our government will always defend the interests of Manitobans. There is no legal justification for the federal government to have rejected Manitoba’s plan while approving less effective plans from other provinces.”
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