I strongly disagree with the…

I strongly disagree with the proposed act. There are several serious problems with it.

First: although the minister is mandated to establish climate change targets, there is no requirement that these targets be any more stringent than what was accomplished under the cap and trade system. It would be within the mandate of this regulation to state that the targets are that CO2 emissions should double over the next five years. If the criticism of the cap-and-trade system is that it is not effective at meeting our internationally-mandated targets, then there should be some guarantee that its replacement will do a better job.

Second: It may or may not be legal to mandate that those firms who bought cap and trade credits be prohibited from taking the province to court because the program was cancelled. But the impulse to disallow legal action against the government because it is inconvenient is a sign that the government cannot be trusted to be responsible for contracts it signs. For a government that claims to be "open for business" this is worrying. Why should companies thinking of doing business in Ontario come here when the government can eliminate its legal recourses on a legislative whim?

Third: this cap-and-trade system was set up in collaboration with Quebec and California. California has an economy larger than many of the world's countries. Why would we want to cancel this system and break those ties with the California government? Losing access to the partnerships the existing system offered with California is foolhardy.