Hello, The current Ontario…

Hello,

The current Ontario government was elected not because of their (mostly non-existent) platform, but because people wanted a change in government. Therefore, it is (especially) wrong for the current Ontario government to believe they can implement whatever they want just because they were elected. Please stop wasting taxpayers' time and money on compensation, lawyers, and cases you can't win: notwithstanding clause debacle, Canada and carbon pricing, Tesla, Greenpeace...you obviously know more will happen based on wording in your proposed Act. Just get on with democratically helping Ontario and Canada meet its commitments to other nations, Canadians, Ontarians, business, and regular people. This is what you were elected to do.

In addition to being high-handed, this government is being hypocritical trying in believing it should control Toronto politics, then turning around and saying that the federal government shouldn't try for a national program to prevent the impacts of climate change. In fact, the Ontario government is wrong on both their stances: you are not mayor of Toronto, Mr. Ford, but the Prime Minister IS the boss of you: Canada has made a commitment, and it is your job to support that.

No carbon-pricing scheme is perfect, but the former Wynne government did a lot of research and opinion polling on the best solutions. Businesses bought in to the cap-and-trade solution, literally. To dismiss it without a second thought is both rash and dangerous. What are your alternatives, other than doing nothing? The fact that you didn't know that Ontario has a public consultation process for environmentally significant legislation and policy until you were being sued is evidence you have not thought this through. Do not throw the baby out with the bathwater.

If your cancellation act proceeds, I agree that, in the short term, individual taxpayers (in urban communities mostly in southern Ontario) may see smaller utility bills. However, in the longer term, not paying up front for things in an equitable way will affect vulnerable people the most through insurance, property damage and higher prices for air conditioning, food, water, land, and other goods. Cancellation also disproportionately affects those who would have benefited from green programs meant to help northern communities, including Indigenous ones. Let's see what climate change costs will be when we're accepting refugees from drought or flood-stricken countries. You can't say any of this won't happen in the future, since we're already seeing the start of it.

Our government is supposed to help promote a fair society that equalizes every individual as much as possible. Plans, movable targets, reports, revisions, and handpicked advisory panels don't actually DO anything. I was optimistic at first that you would fight for the majority of us that do not make very much money, but now I'm not so sure.

Will this comment make any difference?... you've already cancelled a bunch of programs. For what it's worth: I would suggest you do not cancel the cap-and-trade program.