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441-00765 (Social affairs and equality)

PETITION TO THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA

We, the undersigned citizens and residents of Canada, draw the attention of the House of Commons to the following:

Whereas:

  • Bill S-233 and Bill C-223 propose to develop a framework for a universal basic income;

  • A guaranteed basic income means that people would receive a paycheck even if they don't work or don't contribute to our communities;

  • The cost of sending every Canadian money and managing an income distribution system would be in the billions of dollars;

  • Universal income disincentivizes people from working and maintaining a job; and

  • Taxes would have to be astronomically raised to pay for this new expenditure.

Therefore we the undersigned, call upon parliamentarians to:

1) Vote against Bill S-233 and Bill C-223 and any other legislation that encourages a universal income;

2) End the carbon tax and reduce inflation that reduces people's purchasing power ; and

3) Approve new and existing pipeline proposals getting Canadian energy to tidewater while stimulating job growth in Alberta and across Canada.

Response by the Minister of Natural Resources

Signed by (Minister or Parliamentary Secretary): The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, P.C., M.P.

As Canada collectively manages the dual crises of energy security and climate change, the Government of Canada recognizes that a strong oil and gas sector will continue to play a key role throughout Canada’s and the world’s transition to a low-carbon economy. A key part of supporting this transition is continued investment in new and existing energy infrastructure, including pipelines. Such investments are necessary to ensure the reliability of Canada’s energy system, including meeting current oil and natural gas demand and the transportation of various cleaner, low carbon fuels. Pipelines are currently the safest and most efficient way to transport crude oil and natural gas. Their use is expected to evolve as the energy transition continues – including the transportation of hydrogen, ammonia, and carbon dioxide.

In the near-term, the Canadian energy industry is advancing projects to increase the capacity of Canada’s oil and natural gas pipelines to ensure access to export markets, which will also help Canadian producers receive a fair market price for their products. These efforts range from small increases to the capacity of existing pipelines by adding pumping or compression power, to the building of major new projects approved by the Government of Canada, such as the Trans Mountain Expansion Project, the Enbridge Line 3 replacement project, and TC Energy’s expansion of its Nova Gas Transmission Limited (NGTL) system of natural gas pipelines.

Further efforts to increase Canada’s export capacity are also being explored, including investments in new natural gas pipeline projects to enable LNG exports from Canada’s West and East coasts. LNG Canada, which will begin exporting to Asian markets in 2025, and other proposed Canadian LNG projects, aim to develop the world’s lowest emitting facilities and establish reliable, direct access to global markets to capture higher value for Canadian natural gas, support allies’ energy security, and advance the global energy transition.

The Government of Canada also recognizes that the key to advancing our country’s energy transition to a low-carbon economy is a skilled and well-trained energy workforce. Each province is unique and the approaches to a clean energy transition will be different across the country, using the abundance of each region’s resources, technology, talent, and experience. In Alberta, for example, such opportunities are expected to involve hydrogen derived from natural gas, carbon capture and storage (CCUS), critical minerals, renewable forms of energy and biofuels.

Alberta is playing a critical role in Canada’s current and future energy economy, including the building of a prosperous net-zero future. In April of this year, the Government of Canada announced a combined investment of more than $7.5 million to four organizations in Alberta that are in the process of advancing emerging clean technologies. These technologies will help grow our economy and support Canada in its efforts to meet environmental targets, delivering clean and reliable energy and creating sustainable jobs for Albertans.

Response by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance

Signed by (Minister or Parliamentary Secretary): The Honourable Chrystia Freeland

Income security is a shared jurisdiction across different levels of government. At the federal level, the Government of Canada already has programs with similar features to a basic income, such as the Canada Child Benefit for families with children, the Old Age Security program and the Guaranteed Income Supplement for seniors. In addition, existing programs such as the Canada Workers Benefit and Employment Insurance provide income supports for low-income individuals with labour market attachment or those with insurable employment. These programs exist alongside provincial and territorial social assistance programs.

The Government of Canada continually undertakes research and analysis on a range of policies and programs as part of its efforts to ensure that all Canadians have a real and fair opportunity to succeed. Findings from this analysis underscore that a universal basic income program would represent a major change in Canada's social safety net, not only in scope and scale, but also in the way it would have to engage provincial/territorial jurisdiction over social assistance. As numerous academics have pointed out, any basic income proposal has to confront fundamental trade-offs in relation to the amount of the benefit level, the impact on work incentives, and program costs. 

Estimates from different sources place the cost of a basic income at between $80 billion to over $200 billion each year. Depending on choices on those trade-offs and the means of financing, basic income designs could lead some lower-income people to be worse off. For example, the Parliamentary Budget Officer’s recent basic income study in 2021 identified average annual losses exceeding $5,300 for single parents in the second lowest income quintile due to the elimination of existing programs/tax credits to finance a basic income in that model. 

Response by the Minister of Environment and Climate Change

Signed by (Minister or Parliamentary Secretary): The Honourable STEVEN GUILBEAULT

On climate change, the science is clear—we must take action now to protect our planet and secure our children’s future. But the economics are clear too: to build a strong, resilient economy for generations to come, we must harness the power of a cleaner future.

It is much harder to cut pollution if it is free to pollute. The principle is straightforward: a price on carbon pollution establishes how much businesses and households need to pay for their carbon pollution. The higher the price, the greater the incentive to pollute less, conserve energy, and invest in low-carbon solutions. Canadians and businesses understand that putting a price on carbon pollution spurs the development of new technologies and services that can help reduce their emissions cost-effectively, from how they heat their homes to what kind of energy they use to do so. It also provides Canadians and businesses with an incentive to adopt these changes or solutions into their lives. That's why experts consistently recommend carbon pollution pricing as an efficient, effective approach to reducing emissions.

Since 2019, every jurisdiction in Canada has had a comparable price on carbon pollution. Canada's approach is flexible: any province or territory can design its own pricing system tailored to local needs, or it can choose the federal pricing system. The Government of Canada sets minimum national stringency standards (the "benchmark") that all systems must meet to ensure they are comparable and effective in reducing GHG emissions. If a province decides not to price carbon pollution, or proposes a system that does not meet these standards, the federal system is applied. In August 2021, the Government of Canada published strengthened benchmark criteria that all systems will need to meet from 2023-2030.

A key element of the federal benchmark is the price on carbon pollution. The price on carbon pollution started at $20 per tonne of emissions in 2019 – and has been rising at a predictable rate of $10 per year to reach $50 in 2022. Starting in 2023, the price will start rising by $15 per year until it reaches $170 per tonne in 2030. The price schedule is laid out to 2030 to create certainty, which is important for attracting private sector investment.

The federal carbon pollution pricing system has two parts: a regulatory charge on fossil fuels like gasoline and natural gas (the "fuel charge"), and a performance-based emissions trading system for industries, known as the Output-Based Pricing System (OBPS).

The federal carbon pollution pricing system returns all direct proceeds back to the jurisdiction where they were collected. Some provinces and territories receive the funds directly and can use them as they see fit. In other provinces, the federal government uses the proceeds to support to individuals, Indigenous Peoples, families, and businesses through direct payments and federal programming.

The majority of households in jurisdictions that receive Climate Action Incentive payments under the federal backstop system receive more money than they pay. Direct payments to households work because they help make the price on carbon pollution affordable, and enable households to make investments to increase energy efficiency and further reduce emissions. Jurisdictions that currently receive Climate Action Incentive payments are Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario.

 

 

 

 

 

Presented to the House of Commons
Arnold Viersen (Peace River—Westlock)
October 19, 2022 (Petition No. 441-00765)
Government response tabled
December 2, 2022
Photo - Arnold Viersen
Peace River—Westlock
Conservative Caucus
Alberta

Only validated signatures are counted towards the total number of signatures.