Ontario’s Liberal leader is ruling out a provincial carbon tax program if she is elected the next premier, but she’s not saying if she supports the federal one.
Bonnie Crombie is forming a task force to look at how the government can address climate change.
She says everything will be considered except for a carbon tax on consumers.
“We’re very open to the advice that they will bring. The only one criteria, the one mandate I’ve given them is to not go in that direction. There are many other levers that can be pulled and that is certainly one of them,” says Crombie.
Crombie insists the plan developed by the 2026 election will be innovative and will hold polluters accountable.
The Liberals, under Premier Kathleen Wynne, introduced a cap-and-trade program that was scrapped by Premier Ford upon taking office in 2016.
Crombie would not say if she would bring the program back but notes it did bring a lot of money into the provincial coffers and did not require Ontarians to pay the federal levy.
But she stops short when asked whether she supports the federal program.
“I’m not here to tell the federal government how to do their job. They’re getting lots of advice from a lot of people. I’m not going to weigh in on advice. I’m here to create a very ambitious and innovative plans for Ontarians.”
At Queen’s Park, Progressive Conservative members used the opportunity to suggest Crombie fully support the federal carbon tax program while mayor of Mississauga, repeatedly calling her the Queen of the Carbon Tax, a phrase first used by Premier Ford following her election as Liberal leader.
Crombie says the carbon tax exists in Ontario today because Doug Ford eliminated cap-and-trade.
