I oppose the government’s…

I oppose the government’s proposal Bill 4: Cap and Trade Cancellation Act, 2018. The Bill does not live up to what an Ontario Government for the People, as described by Premier Ford, should be striving for. The proposal is weak in terms of accountability to the people of Ontario and protecting the environment. There are a number of areas in the proposed Bill where important pieces of information are vague and are left to be prescribed in regulation, at which time the government can do anything it wants without consulting Ontarians. For example, section 3(1) “The Government shall establish targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in Ontario and may revise targets from time to time.” The lack of commitment to a revision period allows the government to be less accountable to the people of Ontario. What does ‘time to time’ mean? The same can be said for section 4(1) referring to a climate change plan prepared by the Minister which may be revised “from time to time.” In addition, although public notice of these targets and the climate change plan are mentioned in section 3(2) and 4(3), there is no mention of consulting the public on these targets. Regarding progress reports on Ontario’s climate change plan and progress to combat greenhouse gas emissions, “the Minister shall, on a regular basis, prepare reports in respect of the climate change plan” as set out in 5(1). As a Government for the People, this government should build into the legislation a means for the people of Ontario to have input into what topics the Minister should be reporting back to the public and how often they hear about progress. This is the only way Ontarians can be confident in the safety measures and progress made on the quality of their air, water, and ground. The proposal lacks any real information. To improve the proposal, the government should undertake further public consultations, building on what the public has already told the government that was previously in power; a change in government is not going to change what Ontarians have already expressed. As it stands, this proposal is misinforming the public and withholding important details about what this means longer term. The proposed Bill even prohibits any proceedings against the Crown. This goes against what the Government for the People should stand for - a government that rules for the people should allow itself to be accountable to those people, and ensure there are remedies they can take to make this happen. As a Government for the People, I ask you to reconsider and revise this proposal - I urge the government to support Ontario’s current science-based pollution reduction targets. Those targets set the province on track to be nearly carbon neutral by mid-century, which is what is required if we hope to limit global warming to 1.5. degrees, as agreed to by 195 countries in Paris. Backing away from Ontario’s pollution reduction targets will undercut our country's ability to compete in a world moving to clean energy and will threaten future generations’ ability to enjoy a safe climate. These targets are also in step with climate pollution reduction targets in European counties and in sync with targets in leading North American jurisdictions.