Alberta Premier Smith calls out Trudeau on federal carbon tax, Freeland congratulates her win

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is calling on the Liberal federal government to cancel “planned increases” to the federal carbon tax amid surging inflation.

In a letter sent to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Wednesday, Smith calls out the federal government’s use of the carbon tax, and to “address this affordability crisis.”

“Affordability is the primary concern of Albertans and all Canadians. With inflation surging, many Canadians are struggling to feed their families, pay their rent and utilities, and cover the cost of getting to work,” Smith said in a letter.

“The longer-term solution to this affordability crisis involves the federal government changing course to actively promote and deliver the world with more affordable, reliable, and responsibly produced energy and food. Current federal energy and agricultural policies are having the opposite effect.

“Canadians need governments to take immediate action to address this affordability crisis.”

Smith said the province has taken steps to address the rising costs, which includes pausing the collection of fuel tax and offering electricity and natural gas rebates.

Trudeau, she said, should eliminate the federal carbon tax — also described as a price on pollution — and temporarily pause the federal fuel tax.

“The answer to cutting emissions is not more taxes on consumers or curbing economic growth in our food and energy sectors,” Smith said.

“The solution is doing what humanity has always done to successfully overcome our most significant challenges – that being the pursuit of technological advancement and economic growth. We are proud of the action our province is taking in this regard.”

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Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who was in Calgary on Wednesday meeting with business and union leaders, congratulated Smith on her victory and responded to her letter.

“I am sure that she and her government and our government will disagree on a lot of things, but I am also sure that there are a lot of things that we will agree on and that we do agree on,” Freeland said to reporters.

“One thing I really learned during the NAFTA negotiations is that Canada is strongest, and we’re most effective, when we are able to take a ‘Team Canada’ approach and when we are able to really try to focus on the areas where we agree and work together on those.”

Freeland, who is also the finance minister, said the “price on pollution” is revenue-neutral.

“In all jurisdictions that have a backstop, that money is returned 100 per cent to the jurisdiction,” she said. “As people in Alberta know, that means a family of four is receiving more than $1,000 back.”

Freeland said the idea of putting a price on pollution also has a strong Albertan connection.

“Preston Manning was an early advocate,” she said of the former Reform Party leader. “He saw that, and I think he is right, as one of the most economically effective mechanisms for taking climate action. I agree with that view and that’s why our government is moving forward.”

Legislature will reconvene on Nov. 29, where Smith has said she would bring in the Alberta sovereignty act as one of her first orders of business.

The act as proposed by Smith would allow the province to refuse to follow federal laws and court rulings it deemed to be not in Alberta’s best interests and an illegal intrusion into its duly delegated spheres of influence under the Constitution.

Freeland said she has learned not to respond to hypotheticals.

“We will look forward to working with the province of Alberta and we will look closely at any legislation the new premier tables and respond to it when we have something in writing to respond to,” she said.

Smith has made promises to overhaul Alberta Health Services by mid-January, along with increasing the number of surgical procedures while adding more front-line staff to hospitals.