Quebec shows conservatives how to address climate change – iPolitics
All told, the government hopes this
electrification and infrastructure development will allow Quebec to
lower its greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 40 per cent compared to
1990 levels. And by leveraging the province’s manufacturing sector and
its hydroelectric reserves to produce and run all of this, Quebec’s
“greenification” will be good for the economy.
electrification and infrastructure development will allow Quebec to
lower its greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 40 per cent compared to
1990 levels. And by leveraging the province’s manufacturing sector and
its hydroelectric reserves to produce and run all of this, Quebec’s
“greenification” will be good for the economy.
Compare this bit of conservatism to, say,
the Conservative Party leadership race of 2017, in which the vast
majority of the 14 declared candidates were against the carbon tax.
Michael Chong, one of the few candidates to favour such a thing, was literally booed
when he dared defend a carbon tax as the most “conservative” method to
reduce greenhouse gases. Chong finished fifth in that particular race —
well behind Maxime Bernier, who believes carbon “isn’t pollution” and
says carbon taxes are akin to “a socialist green new deal.” In many
countries, institutional climate change denial is political suicide. In
Canada, it constitutes a viable path to power.