As the Liberals' electoral prospects plummet, their insistence on downplaying the impact of their proposed emissions cap becomes increasingly untenable. But rationality seems to have left Ottawa long ago. Surprise, surprise.A recent report from the Conference Board of Canada, originally presented to Alberta's Minister of Finance, Nate Horner and subsequently submitted to the federal government, adds weight to what many have been saying for months: Achieving the proposed emissions targets will likely necessitate production cuts. Sound familiar? That's because it is. And the consequences? Well, they're anything but palatable.After running three scenarios, the Conference Board concluded that: “emissions reductions through new investments and efficiencies are not sufficient to meet the proposed upper legal bound of 134 metric tonnes of Green House Gas emissions by 2030 and would therefore require production cuts (relative to the baseline production forecast in 2030 and beyond) to achieve the emissions target.”The Conference Board's analysis reveals that meeting the emissions targets won't come cheap. We're looking at potential job losses in the tens of thousands and a significant hit to Canada's GDP.Alberta, in particular, stands to suffer greatly. The Conference Board predicts that by the end of the next ten years, the country could see 82,000 to 151,000 job losses, with Alberta facing between 54,000 and 91,000 job cuts.Canada's total economic output (GDP) could decrease by $600 billion to $1 trillion between 2030 and 2040. During this time, Alberta's economy could shrink by 3.8%.Over the next decade, Alberta's government could lose $73 billion to $127 billion in revenue, while federal revenues could drop by $84 billion to $151 billion.That’s not exactly the news that Canadians (or in particular, Albertans) want to hear. Which brings us to our next question. Are the Liberals listening?Of course not! They continue to ignore what is perhaps the biggest reason their poll numbers continue to get worse.People are concerned about affordability in a rising cost environment, and the federal government continues to bring in policy after policy designed to shut down the industry that provides affordable, reliable energy to the rest of the country.As a result of digging in, Justin Trudeau, Steven Guilbeault, and the rest of the climate zealots that make up the federal Liberal Party are only making their situation worse. It turns out eastern Canadians aren’t really interested in freezing in the dark. Nor are they interested in paying the costs of the Liberals’ economically disastrous climate agenda.Yet, despite mounting evidence and public concerns, the Liberals seem impervious to reason. They persist in pushing forward with policies that threaten affordability and economic stability, all in the name of climate action. But as their popularity wanes and dissatisfaction grows, it's clear that Canadians aren't buying into the rhetoric. It's time for the Liberals to start listening before it's too late.
As the Liberals' electoral prospects plummet, their insistence on downplaying the impact of their proposed emissions cap becomes increasingly untenable. But rationality seems to have left Ottawa long ago. Surprise, surprise.A recent report from the Conference Board of Canada, originally presented to Alberta's Minister of Finance, Nate Horner and subsequently submitted to the federal government, adds weight to what many have been saying for months: Achieving the proposed emissions targets will likely necessitate production cuts. Sound familiar? That's because it is. And the consequences? Well, they're anything but palatable.After running three scenarios, the Conference Board concluded that: “emissions reductions through new investments and efficiencies are not sufficient to meet the proposed upper legal bound of 134 metric tonnes of Green House Gas emissions by 2030 and would therefore require production cuts (relative to the baseline production forecast in 2030 and beyond) to achieve the emissions target.”The Conference Board's analysis reveals that meeting the emissions targets won't come cheap. We're looking at potential job losses in the tens of thousands and a significant hit to Canada's GDP.Alberta, in particular, stands to suffer greatly. The Conference Board predicts that by the end of the next ten years, the country could see 82,000 to 151,000 job losses, with Alberta facing between 54,000 and 91,000 job cuts.Canada's total economic output (GDP) could decrease by $600 billion to $1 trillion between 2030 and 2040. During this time, Alberta's economy could shrink by 3.8%.Over the next decade, Alberta's government could lose $73 billion to $127 billion in revenue, while federal revenues could drop by $84 billion to $151 billion.That’s not exactly the news that Canadians (or in particular, Albertans) want to hear. Which brings us to our next question. Are the Liberals listening?Of course not! They continue to ignore what is perhaps the biggest reason their poll numbers continue to get worse.People are concerned about affordability in a rising cost environment, and the federal government continues to bring in policy after policy designed to shut down the industry that provides affordable, reliable energy to the rest of the country.As a result of digging in, Justin Trudeau, Steven Guilbeault, and the rest of the climate zealots that make up the federal Liberal Party are only making their situation worse. It turns out eastern Canadians aren’t really interested in freezing in the dark. Nor are they interested in paying the costs of the Liberals’ economically disastrous climate agenda.Yet, despite mounting evidence and public concerns, the Liberals seem impervious to reason. They persist in pushing forward with policies that threaten affordability and economic stability, all in the name of climate action. But as their popularity wanes and dissatisfaction grows, it's clear that Canadians aren't buying into the rhetoric. It's time for the Liberals to start listening before it's too late.
