Alberta NDP leadership candidate says federal carbon tax is 'dead' – Winnipeg Free Press

CALGARY — Alberta's former deputy premier hit out at the province's NDP leadership on Sunday for criticizing the federal carbon tax and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Sarah Hoffman, who was deputy premier when the NDP was elected in 2015, joins legislative members Kathleen Ganley and Rakhi Pancholi to replace Rachel Notley, who announced her resignation last month.

A new leader will be elected in June.

In an interview with The Canadian Press, Hoffman, 43, said his campaign priorities will be health care, housing and climate change.

Edmonton's Glenora MLA says if the NDP had been willing to engage with voters on climate change during last year's election campaign, it could have gained enough support to defeat the United Conservative Party under current premier Daniel Smith.

As for Hoffman, the federal carbon charge should go to consumers.

“I think the consumer carbon tax is dead. He died in the province at the last election. The feds took it over. Justin Trudeau played dirty politics with him, picking winners and losers. If you don't have public support, you can't keep doing something like this,” Hoffman said.

“I know Albertans care about the climate. We must act. But a carbon consumption tax is not a model that has momentum or support right now. So we have to find new tools to be successful.”

Hoffman plans to release details of his strategy during the campaign, he said, but big polluters should and can afford to pay more.

He said he understands his position may come as a surprise to Alberta voters because the NDP introduced its own carbon price in 2015. But he wants everyone to come together when it comes to fighting climate change.

“No one is going to agree with what Justin Trudeau has done with the federal carbon tax. He breached trust and breached trust when he looked at polling stations in Eastern Canada and decided to release them,” Hoffman said.

The governments of Alberta and Saskatchewan have criticized Ottawa over its decision to exempt home heating oil from a federal carbon tax, which mostly benefits Atlantic Canadians and does not do the same for natural gas, which is widely used to heat homes in those western provinces. .

“Even when the prime minister isn't on board, when he's playing games with it, people can't buy into the federal plan,” Hoffman said.

Hoffman isn't the only NDP leadership hoping to target the carbon charge.

Two-term Edmonton legislator Rakhi Pancholi, who announced her candidacy for the NDP leadership last week, said climate change and the carbon tax are among the most pressing issues for Albertans.

“There's an opportunity to reassess some of the positions we've taken as a party, and to show where Albertans stand. One idea that I would like to discuss more with Albertans is to move away from the consumer carbon tax,” Pancholi said.

“We know that general public opinion on this hasn't changed in seven years, and Albertans in particular have rejected the idea that this is a revenue-neutral proposition.”

Pancholi said he wants to talk to Albertans, economists, the oil and gas sector, the renewables sector and environmentalists about the issue.

“I think it's time for us to start looking at new ideas rather than getting bogged down in existing ideas and looking at ways to develop a strong climate action plan that can get consumers to opt out of the carbon tax.”

Ganley, a member of the Calgary legislature and the first to enter his name in the leadership race on Monday, did not directly respond to carbon pricing when asked about it.

“We're going to have a lot of policies to come out and a lot of things to talk about. I think I'm in favor of policies that lead to decarbonization,” he said.

“My desire is to do it in a way that provides the economic growth possible for the province. There are many ways to achieve this goal.”

— With files from Colette Dervoriz in Calgary

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on February 11, 2024.