Interim Leave Behind Lobbying Ask Fall 2021

Interim Lobbying Asks

1. We support the federal government’s announced intention to gradually increase the federal carbon price to $170/tonne by 2030 and that the rebates will be in the form of quarterly dividends.
2. Furthermore, we are now recommending the government study the following carbon prices in the context of complementary policies also enacted:  $210 by 2030 to $295 by 2035.
3. We have always recommended that carbon price must be revenue-neutral, upstream, economy-wide with minimal, principled exceptions and dividends returned to households equitably.
4. All measurable GHGs must be priced. To begin with, we need natural-gas produced electricity to be removed from the Output-Based Pricing System and pay for all their GHG emissions, immediately. As well, a full accounting of all measurable GHGs must be included in the Federal GHG Inventory including and not limited to volatile anaesthetics such as Desflurane and Sevoflurane.
5. We encourage the government to enact Border Carbon Adjustments (BCAs) and work with trading partners to have them implemented by 2025 at the latest. BCAs will ensure Canadian industries and jobs are protected.
6. We applaud the government’s intentions to review the standards used to assess provincial carbon pricing systems, and engage with provinces and territories as well as with Indigenous Peoples in this review. Strengthening and harmonization of carbon pricing across jurisdictions will be necessary to ensure our carbon pricing policies comply with international trade laws including border carbon adjustments.

CCL Canada is a volunteer-driven and non-partisan organization. Since 2010, we have been focused on advocating for an incrementally increasing price on carbon pollution, with 100% of the revenue returned directly and equitably back to citizens. To date, we have 42 active chapters covering over 120 ridings across the country and have met with government officials over 1200 times.

Citizens’ Climate Lobby Canada will be formally updating our lobbying ask in early 2022. There are several reasons why we are holding off on going through the process of determining our collective lobbying asks including:

1. Article 6 in the Paris Agreement Rule book has yet to be finalized. It is anticipated that it will be finalized at COP 26 in Glasgow.
2. The federal government will be updating its climate plan after COP 26, and it will take time to analyze.
3. Our MPs, new and returning, need time to adjust to the new Parliament, develop their portfolio and find out which committees they will serve on.
4. The Cabinet and Opposition portfolios have to be determined.
5. The new cabinet and their mandate letters from the Prime Minister are yet to be announced.
6. It takes two to three months and about a dozen or so meetings to manifest our formal lobbying asks. We work on it as a team across Canada.