By Ralph Goodale, M.P.
DOES THE “GREEN SHIFT” WORK FOR
The short answer is yes!
Some say a cross-country “carbon tax” may affect
But it’s crucial to examine who would actually have to remit payment to Revenue
This would not be a retail tax, like the GST. It would apply “upstream” at the wholesale level. Consequently, the obligation to remit the tax would be carried by the corporate head offices of companies in the fossil fuels sector, and a big majority of them are not in
So, while this province is where many emissions arise, the responsibility to pay any tax on those emissions is largely located elsewhere – in
But what about consumers? If upstream energy sources become more expensive because of a carbon tax, won’t that get passed down the line for consumers to pay?
The energy prices consumers pay will be determined, as always, by what’s going on in world markets. But some of any carbon tax will get embedded in the final consumer price.
This is equally true under Stephen Harper’s greenhouse gas regulatory scheme. It comes with a cost too.
But a key difference with Stephane Dion’s proposal is that every penny from a levy on carbon will be returned to consumers through income tax cuts.
For example, after being phased-in over four years, the impact of the Dion plan on the average
By contrast, under Mr. Harper’s regulatory plan, there are no tax cuts or offsets. None whatsoever.