Fraser Institute News Release: Ottawa’s carbon tax—fix it or scrap it: duelling essays make the case for and against
28 Marzo 2024 - 3:00AM
With the federal carbon tax set to rise from $65 to $80 per tonne
on April 1, two new essays—published today by the Fraser
Institute—make two opposing arguments, to retain the tax (after
fixing it) and to scrap the tax.
According to the first essay, Reforming the Federal
Government's Carbon Tax Plan, the government should reform
the tax to mitigate its negative economic impacts so the tax simply
replaces—and doesn’t add to—other government regulations and
mandates meant to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Also, the
carbon tax should be “revenue neutral”—that is, the tax should
generate no new net revenue for the government. Currently, only 90
per cent of carbon tax revenue is rebated to taxpayers.
“If implemented correctly, a carbon tax can be the most
economically efficient way to reduce GHG emissions, so fixing
Ottawa’s carbon tax is preferable to other, more costly measures
such as increased regulations and subsidies,” said Ross McKitrick,
senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and essay co-author.
According to the second essay, Carbon Tax Is Beyond
Redemption, the federal government should eliminate the
carbon tax because real-world examples show that governments both
in Canada and Europe have failed to implement sound, well-designed
carbon taxes. Most are not revenue neutral, not imposed uniformly
among industries, and remain layered on top of other costly
regulations and mandates, negating the theoretical benefits of the
tax.
“The lessons from Canada and beyond are clear—carbon taxes may
work in theory, but no government has successfully implemented a
properly designed carbon tax,” said Kenneth Green, essay author and
senior fellow at the Fraser Institute.
MEDIA CONTACT:Kenneth Green, Senior Fellow,
Fraser Institute
Ross McKitrick, Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute
To arrange media interviews or for more information, please
contact:Drue MacPherson, Media Relations, Fraser
Institute604-688-0221 ext.
721drue.macpherson@fraserinstitute.org
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