Four conservative premiers will appear before a House of Commons committee this week to ask Ottawa to reconsider its “punishing” April 1 increase of the federal carbon tax.
The premiers of Alberta, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Saskatchewan shared on social media this week letters they had written to the House Finance Committee requesting a chance to testify about the impending carbon price hike.
The premiers’ letters described the upcoming 23 percent increase that will see carbon pricing rise from $65 to $80 per tonne as “punitive” and “disastrous” for Canadians.
Liberal House Finance Committee Chair Peter Fonseca declined to recall the panel of MPs to accommodate the provincial leaders’ request, Tory MP Kelly McCauley said in a March 26 social media post.
But the premiers will have the chance to express their opinions before the committee Mr. McCauley chairs. The Conservative chair of the Government Operations and Estimates committee has invited the premiers to testify via video conference.
“Premiers should be welcomed before parliamentary committees and given the opportunity to testify, especially on matters of national importance, like the April 1 carbon tax hike,” Mr. McCauley said in a letter posted on X.