Jonathan Wilkinson

[Carbon Pricing, October 21st, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, the Parliamentary Budget Officer and 300 economists across this country have said that eight out of 10 Canadian families get more money back, and it works directly inverse to income. By taking away the price on pollution, the most vulnerable will become more vulnerable. The Leader of the Opposition and his caucus know that, but certainly—

[Carbon Pricing, October 21st, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, every day, we see the Conservatives get up in the House and tell mistruths. Eight out of 10 Canadian families get more money back than they pay for the price on pollution.

Of course, this is no surprise when we hear what the Conservatives' closest friends and allies have to say. Danielle Smith believes planes are spraying chemtrails. Ches Crosbie says climate change is bogus. John Rustad says fighting climate change is a plot to reduce the human population and force people to eat bugs.

They say one can tell a lot about people from the company they keep. Well, we certainly can.

[Taxation, October 21st, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, we on this side of the House have a plan for a prosperous economic future for this country.

The Conservatives, who continue to deny the existence of climate change, have a plan that leads backwards, not forwards. We are ensuring that things like the $12-billion Dow plant in Alberta is getting built, along with the $7-billion Jansen potash mine, electric vehicle and battery plants, and hydrogen facilities in Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador.

We have a plan for a future that is a great and prosperous future. The Conservatives have no plan.

[Carbon Pricing, October 1st, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, it is very clear that the vast majority of Canadian families get more money back than they pay. That has been validated by 300 economists, very much including Trevor Tombe, who Conservatives like to quote these days as an economist of record.

Not having a climate plan or an economic plan for the future would have dire implications for the people who live in Atlantic Canada. These folks, the Conservatives, oppose the Atlantic accord and the work being done to launch an offshore wind industry and a hydrogen industry to ensure we are creating good jobs and economic opportunities in Atlantic Canada. They have no plan for the climate. They have no plan for the economy.

[Emergency Preparedness, September 27th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, not only, as my colleague said, does Canada actually have a comprehensive plan to address and mitigate carbon emissions that cause climate change, but we have also invested significantly in climate adaptation to ensure that we are taking the steps to do what we can to prevent significant impacts from the climate change that is already with us. Certainly, Parks Canada has been a part of that. It is a leader in the context of managing parks on a climate adaptation basis.

I think it is just reprehensible that the member is throwing the officials from Parks Canada under the bus.

[Carbon Pricing, September 27th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I would commend the hon. member on actually getting the various tag lines correct. I am sure the gold star will actually be on the board in the Conservative Party office.

At the end of the day, I would invite folks on the other side of the House to actually look at the facts. There are 300 economists in this country who have validated the fact that eight out of 10 Canadians get more money back, and we have seen that putting a price on pollution is an effective way to reduce emissions. Carbon emissions are down in this country. We are on track to achieve our climate goals, and we are moving forward to build an economy that will be strong and create economic opportunity for Canadians in every province and territory.

[Carbon Pricing, September 27th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, just like the Conservative Party of Canada, Premier Moe in Saskatchewan has no effective plan to address climate change and no effective plan to build an economy that is going to be strong in the future.

We have designed the price on pollution in a manner that addresses affordability concerns and helps with affordability concerns with those most vulnerable in our society. We have built the most comprehensive climate plan in the world. We are on track to achieve emissions reductions. This is progress. At some point, the climate-denying Conservatives on the other side need to get with the program, recognize the reality of climate change and embed that in environmental and economic policy.

[Carbon Pricing, September 27th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, as I said, this is an affordability mechanism where eight out of 10 families get more money back, and it is the poorest, the most vulnerable, who actually get the most back.

However, I would encourage the member across the way to have a conversation with Premier Scott Moe, who actually said, when he looked at the price on pollution and the alternatives, that all of the other alternatives are too expensive. Scott Moe's solution, which I guess is the Conservative Party's solution, is essentially to do nothing to fight climate change.

[Carbon Pricing, September 27th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, I find it very interesting that the Conservative Party of Canada is campaigning on behalf of Mr. Rustad and the Conservative Party of B.C. I guess its members share his views on anti-vaccination and his denial of climate change, along with a range of other things, including very ludicrous stories coming from the Internet about eating bugs. This is something that has perhaps infected our friends across the way.

[Carbon Pricing, September 27th, 2024]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said a number of times, eight out of 10 Canadian families get more money back than they pay. It works directly inverse to income. I would be more than happy to sit with my friend across the way to walk him through the 300 economists who validate that assertion.

With respect to Premier Eby, I agree with his concern around affordability. He took a bunch of the revenue and used it in general revenue, which is not something the federal government does. We return the money to Canadians, and eight out of 10 get more money back. It is an affordability measure and an efficient way to fight climate change.