OTTAWA -- One of two hold-out provinces will sign on to a national carbon reduction deal, federal Environment Minister Catherine McKenna says.
The federal, provincial and territorial governments met Friday to discuss a national system of carbon pricing, with each province and territory but Saskatchewan and Manitoba agreeing to it. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says any provincial government that doesn't introduce a carbon tax or cap and trade program by 2018 will have one imposed by his government.
In an interview with Evan Solomon, host of CTV's Question Period, McKenna suggested Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall will soon be the only holdout.
"Manitoba's going to sign on. I had a great discussion with the premier [Brian Pallister]," McKenna said.
"They have committed to climate action. They're already acting. They committed to a price on carbon in the speech from the throne."
Pallister tied his refusal to the Liberals' plan to cut the rate of increase for health-care transfer payments next year. While health-care funding will continue to grow, the Liberals are going to maintain the previous government's decision to limit the annual increase to three per cent a year. The provinces and territories have been getting six per cent annual boosts for more than a decade.
McKenna linked Pallister's pending co-operation to a desire to tackle greenhouse gas emissions.
"All Canadians, including Manitoba, want action on climate change, so yes [he will sign on]," she said.
Pallister sounded less certain about his province's acquiesence. In a statement released as the premiers headed into dinner Friday night, he said he was pleased they were about to have "a preliminary meeting" to talk health care.
"We remain hopeful that the same kind of focused commitment we saw today on addressing climate change at the first ministers' table will be evident in our discussions on health. We will wait and see," he said.
"Our answer therefore remains -- not yet."
Wall, for his part, sounds much less likely to be about to join the agreement.
"It just doesn't strike me as the most efficacious public policy, frankly. And I think it's questionable," he said.
The Saskatchewan premier says he fears a carbon tax would be disastrous for his province's economy at a time when the resource sector is already struggling. He also says Saskatchewan won't be able to compete with North Dakota, which shares some of the same oil and gas deposits, if Canada has a carbon tax that the U.S. doesn't.
Wall and Trudeau seemed barely able to contain their frustration with each other as their differences on climate policy spilled over to the day's closing press conference. Both men challenged each other's answers and whispered to the premiers sitting next to them.
McKenna said she wanted to "focus on the positive."
"Brad Wall agreed with 99 per cent of the plan. So there's investments in adaptation, there's other measures to reduce emissions. We got a deal with them on coal phase-out. They want investments in innovation," she said.
"We have a different view on pricing pollution, but our perspective is this makes us more competitive, not less."
