UPDATED May 1, 2018 1:48pmET
The Conservatives have an opposition day in the House of Commons. Their motion looks at carbon pricing and whether the government is disclosing enough information on its potential impact:
That, given the Liberal government made a specific campaign promise to Canadians that “government data and information should be open by default, in formats that are modern and easy to use”, the House hereby order that all documents be produced in their original and uncensored form indicating how much the federal carbon tax proposed in Budget 2018 will cost Canadian families in order to put an end to the carbon tax cover-up.
Watch live:
Here’s what Conservative finance critic Pierre Poilievre told reporters this morning before introducing the motion:
Conservative MPs have repeatedly raised the issue during recent question periods, with the government defending its approach to carbon pricing and climate change.
Here are the first three exchanges from yesterday afternoon:
#QP 1/ @CandiceBergenMP Cda’s competitiveness is suffering, partly due to govt’s carbon tax. What is the cost of the tax on Cdn families? @Bill_Morneau Cda has done exceptionally well over past 2.5 yrs… We will focus on how to improve that competitiveness. #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/Xukb6hTTL0
— CPAC (@CPAC_TV) April 30, 2018
#QP 2/ @CandiceBergenMP Will the Liberals tell us how much this carbon tax is going to cost everyday Cdns?@jimcarr_wpg Conservatives only have Conservative Harper approach of doing nothing on climate change while claiming they can achieve emission targets #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/OPkrINnPq0
— CPAC (@CPAC_TV) April 30, 2018
#QP 3/ @CandiceBergenMP Cdns deserve to know truth, will govt give answer on how much carbon tax is going to cost?@jimcarr_wpg Our plan cuts pollution to equivalent of closing 20 coal plants, economy and GDP continue to grow in cleaner ways. #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/5c9osAbdg6
— CPAC (@CPAC_TV) April 30, 2018
The government released a report yesterday that claims:
GDP growth would remain strong with pan-Canadian carbon pricing. Applying the federal carbon pricing system to the nine provinces and territories that are not pricing carbon pollution today would not be expected to have any significant impact on national economic growth rates in the context of a more than $2 trillion economy. It is also likely to stimulate innovation, investments in clean technology and benefit long-term growth opportunities, although these benefits are not included in the modelling analysis.
This followed last week’s analysis from the Parliamentary Budget Officer report that projects Canada’s 2022 GDP to be 0.5 per cent lower because of carbon pricing.
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MPs also vote on last week’s NDP motion calling for an official papal apology for the Catholic church’s involvement in residential schools.
Here’s what you can expect in committee:
- Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland discusses the international implications of legalized cannabis at the Senate foreign affairs committee. LIVE ONLINE at 4:15pm ET / 1:15pm PT
- Senator Doug Black discusses Bill S-245 at the Senate transport committee — a move to declare Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline expansion a work for the “general advantage of Canada” as defined by Section 92(10) of the Constitution Act, and thereby giving control to the federal government. This so-called declaratory power has not been invoked by Ottawa since 1961. LIVE ONLINE at 9:30am ET / 6:30am PT
- Julie Gelfand, the federal environment and sustainable development commissioner, discusses her most recent reports at the Commons environment committee. LIVE ONLINE at 11am ET / 8am PT
- Innovation, Science and Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains and Science Minister Kirsty Duncan answer questions on estimates at the industry committee. LIVE ONLINE at 3:30pm ET / 12:30pm PT
-Andrew Thomson