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The federal natural resources minister says Saskatchewan residents won’t get a carbon rebate, after the province announced Thursday it would stop remitting the levy on natural gas to Ottawa.
Jonathan Wilkinson told reporters the province’s move hurts lower-income families in Saskatchewan, who would get more in rebates than they pay in levies.
It’s difficult to provide rebates when no money is being collected, he said.
“They will no longer get the rebate,” Wilkinson said in Ottawa. “The rebate actually provides more money for most families in Saskatchewan.”
Wilkinson’s comments basically repeated what the federal ministry of finance had said about the rebates earlier.
In a post on social media, Premier Scott Moe questioned why the federal government would cancel the rebate to residents of this province when it was still providing carbon tax relief to families in the Maritimes.
He called the feds’ removal of the rebate “a ridiculous and unfair response to Saskatchewan providing tax fairness for Saskatchewan families.”
“If the Trudeau government follows through on this threat, they will once again be penalizing Saskatchewan families for wanting to be treated the same as other Canadians,” Moe wrote.
“But if Saskatchewan people stop getting the rebate entirely, Saskatchewan should stop paying the carbon tax entirely. No rebate = no tax.”
My response to the federal government threatening to take away the Carbon Tax Rebate for Saskatchewan families. pic.twitter.com/mcDbYQx1FZ
— Scott Moe (@PremierScottMoe) February 29, 2024
The Saskatchewan NDP is slamming Moe for failing to secure the same type of carbon tax carveout that Atlantic Canada received.
“If Scott Moe actually wanted to save families hundreds of dollars, he could have removed his Sask. Party tax on gas and fuel, but he said no. He’s making life more expensive,” NDP Leader Carla Beck said in a media release.
Beck agreed that it comes down to fairness for Saskatchewan families and that it isn’t right to remit an unfair and unequal tax to the federal government. But she blasted Moe for taking trips to Dubai and India instead of working to get an exemption.
Moe announced in October that SaskEnergy would stop collecting the carbon price from customers in January, and the province had until Thursday to remit those dollars.
SaskEnergy is breaking federal emissions law by choosing not to remit the levy, which could result in fines or jail time for executives. The Saskatchewan government has passed legislation that aims to shield executives from legal consequences, putting that burden on the province.
Wilkinson said Saskatchewan’s move is reckless, as the law to impose a carbon levy was upheld by the Supreme Court of Canada.
“(It’s) irresponsible and almost unheard of in the history of this country,” he said.
“Premiers, just like prime ministers, are responsible for passing laws and they expect their citizens to abide by those laws. If you do not have that expectation, you have anarchy.”
Federal Justice Minister Arif Virani said his job is to uphold the laws of the country.
“I’m not going to engage in hypotheticals about what (Saskatchewan) may or may not do in the future. When they actually take a step like that, we will deal with it accordingly,” he said.
Dustin Duncan, minister responsible for SaskEnergy, said the decision not to remit wasn’t taken lightly and the provincial government recognizes there may be consequences.
“This is also about fairness and our government refusing to allow (Prime Minister Justin) Trudeau to treat Saskatchewan people like second-class citizens,” Duncan said in a video message while standing outside the Parliament Buildings.
The Saskatchewan and Alberta governments have said it’s not fair Ottawa has exempted home heating oil from the carbon charge — a move that largely benefits Atlantic Canadians — and has not done the same for natural gas, used to warm homes on much of the Prairies.
Duncan said the average household in Saskatchewan is expected to save about $400 this year as a result of the province no longer collecting the charge on carbon.
Wilkinson said the rebate for a family of four in Saskatchewan is $1,500 and, for those in rural communities it’s $1,800.
— With files from Mia Rabson and Stephanie Taylor in Ottawa and 980 CJME’s Daniel Reech
Jeremy Simes, The Canadian Press
