Ottawa gets support from B.C. in carbon tax fight with Saskatchewan and Ontario

Ottawa gets support from B.C. in carbon tax fight with Saskatchewan and Ontario
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The B.C. government says it will intervene in separate court cases supporting federal climate action legislation in the Saskatchewan and Ontario court of appeal. Photo courtesy CBC.

The B.C. government says it will intervene in separate court cases supporting federal climate action legislation in the Saskatchewan and Ontario court of appeal. Photo courtesy CBC.

The B.C. government says it will support Ottawa’s legislation to put a minimum price on greenhouse gases in two separate court cases in Saskatchewan and Ontario.

The province will intervene in court to support the federal government’s climate action legislation as Saskatchewan and Ontario challenge Ottawa’s authority to pass its greenhouse gas pollution pricing act.

B.C. Attorney General David Eby says the province will argue federal and provincial governments have a role to address climate change, but Ottawa has the right and responsibility to establish a minimum price on greenhouse gas pollution.

In a release Tuesday morning, the attorney general’s office said, “the Supreme Court of Canada has repeatedly said environmental protection is a matter of shared federal and provincial jurisdiction.”

Saskatchewan and Ontario are challenging federal authority to pass a greenhouse gas pollution pricing act to their respective high courts.

Environment Minister George Heyman says B.C. is already leading the country when it comes to carbon pricing with its own carbon-pricing system and says other provinces should follow suit with the national climate strategy.

The Saskatchewan case is expected to be heard in February, while the Ontario case is scheduled to be heard in April.

With files from the Canadian Press.

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