Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for his question.
The Government of Canada has been very clear that it does not intend to address greenhouse gas emissions through a carbon tax.
Our government's record is clear. We have taken decisive action on the environment while protecting our economy. We have already begun to implement our sector-by-sector approach, starting with two of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in this country: the transportation and electricity sectors.
Last year, the government also announced new regulations in order to limit the increase in hydrofluorocarbons and to further reduce emissions in the transportation sector.
In the transportation sector, Canada worked with the United States to develop GHG emission standards for new passenger vehicles and new light trucks. We are doing the same thing for heavy-duty vehicles.
Building on existing regulations for light-duty vehicles, we released regulations that will lead to the progressive implementation of increasingly stricter standards that are harmonized with U.S. standards for model years 2017 through 2025. With these regulations, 2025 model vehicles will consume up to 50% less fuel and produce 50% less greenhouse gases than 2008 model vehicles.
In the electricity sector, Canada boasts one of the cleanest electricity systems in the world, with more than three-quarters of our electricity supply emitting no greenhouse gases. We have taken further steps to make it even cleaner. In fact, Canada became the first major coal user to ban the construction of traditional coal-fired electricity generation units.
In addition to contributing to Canada's climate change objectives, this measure will help improve air quality for Canadians.
On April 11, 2014, Environment Canada released the national inventory report to provide Canadians with a coherent picture of emission levels across the country. The report indicated that between 2005 and 2012, the economy grew by 10.6%, while Canadian greenhouse gas emissions decreased by 5.1% over the same period. Our per capita emissions are now at their lowest level since tracking began in 1990. Those are real results.