Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan premier plans to appeal carbon tax decision to Supreme Court

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Court rules 3-2 in favour of federal government; but dissenters say carbon tax wholly unconstitutional

THIS IS A WASTE OF TAXPAYERS MONEY, ALBERTA HAS THE BEST CARBON TAX WHICH IS PROVINCIALLY REDEEMABLE FOR 60% OF THE POPULATION
THIS LEGAL CHALLENGE WILL GO NOWHERE AS DID THE PROVINCES CHALLENGES TO THE FEDERAL GUN REGISTRY (EP)

Creeden Martell · CBC News · Posted: May 03, 2019 12:03 PM CT | Last Updated: May 3

Saskatchewan's Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the federal government by a margin of 3-2 in a legal battle against the federal carbon tax. Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe says the province will appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada. (Michael Bell/Canadian Press

Saskatchewan's Court of Appeal has ruled that the carbon tax imposed on the

province by the federal government is constitutionally sound and falls within the

legislative authority of Parliament. The ruling was released Friday.

Premier Scott Moe said the decision will be appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada. The province has about 30 days to appeal, according to Saskatchewan Attorney General Don Morgan. The provincial government would act as intervenor in other court challenges against the carbon tax. 

"I remain hopeful for a different outcome," Moe said in the aftermath of the decision's release.

"No one in this nation should confuse climate action with a carbon tax."

Lawyers for the provincial government had argued the tax is unfair and unconstitutional. The 155-page decision was not unanimous. Three judges ruled in favour of the federal government while two ruled the law was wholly unconstitutional.

Justices Ralph Ottenbreit and Neal Caldwell were the dissenting opinions as they argued Part 1 of The Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act,which imposes a charge on greenhouse gas-producing fuels and waste, is invalid and an unconstitutional delegation of Parliament's law-making power. 

Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna speaks in the foyer of the House of Commons in Ottawa on Friday. McKenna called out political opponents of the carbon tax, challenging them to 'stop the partisan games and join in on serious and effective climate action.' (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

Moe said Saskatchewan, and the rest of Canada, will be able to have their say on the federal carbon tax when the next general election rolls around. He pointed out that the carbon tax became a hot button issue in recent provincial elections and will be a factor again in October.

"It was forced on the provinces across the nation ... by the prime minister of Canada," Moe said of the carbon tax. "The only effectiveness this tax has is ultimately moving jobs out of our jurisdiction into other areas of the world, and we won't stand for that."

Saskatchewan had introduced its own carbon plan, Prairie Resilience, but did not place a price on carbon. The federal government's carbon price starts at a minimum of $20 a tonne and is to rise $10 each year until 2022. 

Federal Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna praised the court's decision to uphold Ottawa's jurisdiction. 

"It confirms that putting a price on carbon pollution and returning the revenues to Canadians through the Climate Action Incentive rebate is not only constitutional, it is an effective and essential part of any serious response to the global challenge of climate change," McKenna said in Ottawa on Friday.

McKenna challenged opponents of the carbon tax to "stop the partisan games and join in on serious and effective climate action." She re-emphasized the court's findings that a price on carbon is "an essential aspect or element of the global effort to limit GHG emissions."

Brett Dolter, an economics professor at the University of Regina, said the decision means the Saskatchewan government must now look at how it should modify its own made-in-Saskatchewan carbon reduction plan — whether it's similar to the federal plan, or offering rebate cheques, or moving the revenue to other sectors of government which could use the funding.

Watch CBC Saskatchewan's special coverage:

"The policy can be designed to ensure people don't fall behind. That's the message I want people to realize," said Dolter. "We often talk about carbon pricing as if it's just this cost — and we often forget about the money coming in that could offset this impact."

Ontario has also launched a court challenge against the carbon tax, which was implemented by the federal government on April 1 in provinces that did not have their own carbon pricing plan that satisfied criteria laid out by Ottawa.

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said in a statement that the decision from the Saskatchewan court is "far from the broad victory the federal government sought." 

• Sask.'s highest court to release decision on province's challenge of federal carbon tax

• Premier criticizes report that says most Sask. households come out ahead despite carbon tax

Kenney also said Alberta would be joining Saskatchewan's case as it appeals it to the Supreme Court. Kenney touted his province's plan, which includes carbon-capture storage but does not mention phasing out coal. Alberta's plan instead looks at emissions targets that could force some coal plants to close or switch to a cleaner fuel to remain profitable.

"We believe that our strong plan makes a federal carbon tax redundant and that a consumer-punishing retail carbon tax — whether imposed by the NDP or by Justin Trudeau ­— is the wrong way to go. It's all economic pain and no environmental gain," Kenney's statement reads.

New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs said he's disappointed by the decision, and that the province would consult its attorney general to "determine the most effective means to continue our opposition."

• Anti-carbon tax crusaders Doug Ford, Jason Kenney meet at Queen's Park

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  Canada can learn from Australia's carbon pricing mistakes

"The unfair federal tax does not, and will not, work within the strategies developed in New Brunswick to address one of the most pressing issues of our times," he said in a statement. 

Manitoba's Premier Brian Pallister has said his province will also launch its own court challenge.

There's also the possibility that the Supreme Court may not hear the case if courts in Saskatchewan, Ontario and Manitoba come to similar conclusions about the constitutionality of carbon pricing, according to experts.

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Mass. Judge Refuses to Halt Pro-Palestinian Event at UMass Featuring Roger Waters & Linda Sarsour
STORY MAY 03, 2019

Watch Full Show

GUESTS
Sut Jhally
professor of communication at the University of Massachusetts and founder and executive director of the Media Education Foundation, which organized the event, “Not Backing Down: Israel, Free Speech, and the Battle for Palestinian Human Rights.”
Rachel Weber
attorney and member Jewish Voice for Peace, Western Massachusetts chapter.

LINKS
Not Backing Down Event Details
Jewish Voice for Peace

“Not Backing Down: Israel, Free Speech, and the Battle for Palestinian Human Rights.” That’s the title of an event set to take place Saturday at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. After three anonymous UMass students filed a lawsuit to stop the event, a judge ruled Thursday the event can proceed, saying, “There’s nothing that comes even close to a threat of harm or incitement to violence or lawlessness.” We get an update from Sut Jhally, event organizer and professor of communication at the University of Massachusetts, and Rachel Weber, attorney and member Jewish Voice for Peace, Western Massachusetts chapter.

British Columbia

'I realized how much power I held': Climate change workshops offer high school students hope for the future

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Program intends to rollout in schools across Vancouver this fall

Joel Ballard · CBC News · Posted: May 03, 2019 5:47 PM PT | Last Updated: May 3

UBC Grace Nosek, in red, sits at a table of students including 15-year-old Nina Rossing, pictured at the computer. They are working together to combat climate change. (Submitted by Grace Nosek)

The project, which is in its pilot phase, was created after its organizer, UBC PhD law student Grace Nosek, visited students around Vancouver to ask them how they felt about climate change.

She says her questions were overwhelmingly met with pessimistic outlooks.

"Extinction, the end of the world and the death of all animals," was the general response from students, Nosek said, speaking with Stepehn Quinn, the host of CBC's The Early Edition.

• Canada's sea levels are rising — and that's got British Columbians in coastal cities concerned

She says she wanted to give young people hope and a way to affect change.

"We feel like there's a moral prerogative to give them a sense that there's a future...that they can have agency on climate," she said.

Inspiring climate ambassadors

Nina Rossing, like many of her friends at Prince of Wales Secondary, has known about climate change for a while but never felt she could really make a difference until she joined the workshop.

"I realized how much power I held and how much power this generation holds. That could change the world," said 15-year-old Rossing.

Hundreds of students walked out of classes Friday afternoon to protest government inaction on climate change in downtown Vancouver. ((Evan Mitsui/CBC))

She says simple decisions like buying less clothing and changing the type of light bulb used at home could make a significant impact if everyone were to commit to making a difference.

• Climate change and poor planning are fuelling more floods. Here's what we can do about it

Since taking part, Rossing has also reached out to her local MLA, Melanie Mark, as well as Education Minister Rob Fleming to demand more education on climate change in B.C. schools.

"We do learn the science behind climate change, but we're not really told how we can act [to fix it], she said.

"That is, I think, a huge problem."

'The scale of hope'

The program launched two weeks ago and Nosek says she has already noticed the effect empowering one person has on others.

Students rally in downtown Vancouver Friday to call for government action on climate change. ((Evan Mitsui/CBC))

She says she has watched Rossing inspire hundreds of other students to take ownership over the planet.

"The scale of hope is the is the only thing, in my mind, that takes on the scale of the crisis," said Nosek.

In the fall, she intends to launch workshops in schools across Vancouver. 

TransCanada shareholders agree to drop ‘Canada’ from the name

Posted By: The Canadian Presson: May 03, 2019In: News, Top Stories

Russ Girling, President and CEO of TransCanada Corp., says the new name, TC Energy, acknowledges the company’s origin as TransCanada while signalling that it has evolved. (Mike Ridewood/The Canadian Press). Photo courtesy of CBC.

TransCanada Corp. is officially dropping the “Canada” from its name, but CEO Russ Girling isn’t saying he expects it will make it any easier to get pipelines approved in Canada or the United States.

The Calgary-based company is now to be called TC Energy Corp., after shareholders approved the change at its annual meeting Friday.

“The name TC Energy acknowledges our origin as TransCanada PipeLines, while adding the word ‘energy’ speaks to the breadth of our business, which includes pipelines, power generation and energy storage,” Girling told the meeting.

“But to be clear, this is a name change, not a brand name. We are very proud of who we are and what we do.”

He declined to talk to reporters after the event.

The company said the change recognizes its growth into the United States and Mexico, including through its recent US$13-billion purchase of U.S. natural gas transporter Columbia Pipeline Group.

It has about 7,000 employees in North America, with 3,500 in Canada, 3,200 in the U.S. and 300 in Mexico.

But some analysts suggest it’s also a chance to distance itself from Canada, where difficulty in getting pipeline projects approved has been blamed for a glut of oil that caused steep discount pricing last fall and prompted the Alberta government to curtail production starting in January.

“I think the name change is semantics,” U.S.-based analyst Jennifer Rowland of Edward Jones wrote in an email.

“I don’t think it attracts new investors, but I do think it’s a subtle, or not so subtle depending on how you view it, way to de-emphasize Canada as some investors are leery of investing in Canada given the government intervention in free markets in Alberta and the difficult regulatory environment for energy.”

TransCanada’s Keystone XL pipeline from Alberta into the U.S. was first proposed in 2008, rejected by then-president Barack Obama in 2015, approved by President Donald Trump in 2016 and again in March, but remains on hold awaiting court rulings in Montana and Nebraska.

The court delays mean the project will not be able to start construction in the U.S. this year, Paul Miller, president of liquids pipelines, confirmed during an afternoon conference call with financial analysts.

The project could still be unfinished if a new federal government is elected in the U.S. in 2020, he added, but it’s hoped all permits and approvals will be in hand by then and a new administration won’t affect bringing the project on stream.

Shareholders at the meeting voted almost 90 per cent against a motion sponsored by the Pension Plan of the United Church of Canada that would have required the company to report on how it is meeting international standards for Indigenous people’s rights.

They went along with the company’s recommendation to reject the motion as unnecessary given its existing policies.

The official approval of the name change came as the company reported a first-quarter profit of $1 billion of $1.09 per share, up from $734 million or 83 cents per share a year ago.

Revenue for the first quarter totalled $3.49 billion, compared with $3.42 billion in the first quarter of 2018.

On a comparable basis, TransCanada says it earned $987 million or $1.07 per share for the quarter, up from $864 million or 98 cents per share a year ago.

Analysts on average had expected a profit of 99 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters Eikon.

Story by Dan Healing, The Canadian Press