Alberta demands federal action on affordability: Premier Smith

Premier Danielle Smith issued the following statement demanding federal action on affordability:

“Affordability is the primary concern of Albertans and all Canadians. With inflation surging, many Canadians are struggling to feed their families, pay their rent and utilities, and cover the cost of getting to work. Canadians need governments to take immediate action to address this affordability crisis.

“This is why our government has already taken steps to help Albertans and Alberta businesses cope with soaring energy prices, including pausing collection of the fuel tax and offering electricity and natural gas rebates. Our government will be announcing more affordability measures soon. “Unfortunately, the federal government continues to advance policies that raise costs, target resource-producing provinces like Alberta, and create investor uncertainty. Some recent examples include Bill C-69 (Impact Assessment Act), the oil and gas emissions cap, the federal plastics ban, the clean electricity regulation, and fertilizer reduction targets.

“Imprudent fiscal policies have also contributed to high inflation, ultimately resulting in higher borrowing costs for households. An immediate and simple step your federal government should take is to cancel the planned increases in the federal carbon tax. The more than tripling of this tax between now and 2030 will add fuel to the inflation crisis, adding unnecessary costs to families heating their homes and driving to work. In point of fact, elimination of the carbon tax entirely, along with temporarily pausing federal fuel taxes, would assist millions of Canadians to better cope with this inflation crisis. “The longer-term solution to this affordability crisis involves the federal government changing course to actively promote and deliver the world with more affordable, reliable, and responsibly produced energy and food. Current federal energy and agricultural policies are having the opposite effect.

“Concrete action is urgently needed, or Canada, in addition to fuelling the inflation crisis, is also at risk of further marginalizing itself on the world stage.

“The harsh reality of the democratic world’s vulnerability to energy-producing powers that do not share our values has hit home, and Europe is now bracing for a cold and bitter lesson in the strategic folly of economic reliance on Russia. The answer is clear: the world must look to responsible producers for our energy needs as we undertake the necessary transition to a lower-emissions future. The immediate global challenge before us – addressing this energy crisis without further enabling dictatorships – will be impossible without energy supply from countries like Canada.

“Canada is one of the most credible and responsible producers, and our messaging to the world must highlight this fact. In Alberta, government and industry are making significant progress on reducing emissions, with oilsand firms committing to invest $24 billion on projects to help reduce annual emissions from operations by 22 million tonnes by 2030 and achieve a goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. Emissions reductions will also occur through the phase out of coal-generated electricity by 2023, increased hydrogen production, and advancement of technologies such as small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) and carbon capture and storage.

“The answer to cutting emissions is not more taxes on consumers or curbing economic growth in our food and energy sectors. The solution is doing what humanity has always done to successfully overcome our most significant challenges – that being the pursuit of technological advancement and economic growth. We are proud of the action our province is taking in this regard.

“I look forward to seeing real action from your federal government to address affordability concerns for Canadians and Albertans, and hearing more on how Canada will stand up now and commit to being a part of the solution to the global energy and food security crisis before us.”