This author made an appearance before a federal parliamentary committee on the industrial carbon tax this week. Boy, was it an interesting experience. I’ve appeared before many such committees in my day, but I don’t think I’ve ever experienced such disdain and downright rudeness on the part of the Liberal MPs on the committee. It so happened the other three presenters were all representatives of climate-related organizations, so I was on my own as a representative of the businesses that actually had to pay the industrial carbon tax and experience its negative impacts.
My presentation – all witnesses are given a whole five minutes at committees to present their views on the topic of the day – was based on current economic facts that show our economy in deep trouble. A recent Royal Bank study showed that about $1 trillion dollars in investment had fled Canada during the Liberal party’s tenure since 2015, an all-time record for Canada. And not a good one. The reasons for this investment exodus were not a mystery – increased taxes, increased regulatory burden and measures that kneecapped our most productive industry, oil and gas. The Liberals also grew the federal government excessively at the expense of the private sector, which is never viewed positively by investors.
Other points in my presentation included the well-documented facts that many businesses are leaving Canada because of the uncompetitive business environment that is threatening their businesses. The vast majority are going to the U.S. This is happening not because they want to, but because their businesses face serious problems and even bankruptcy if they don’t get out of Canada. Statistics also show that some of our most talented young people are leaving Canada for the U.S., as they will have lower taxes, lower housing prices and many more opportunities south of the border.
I also noted how our manufacturing sector in Canada was shrinking. This is important as manufacturing is one of the two most productive sectors in Canada. The other very productive sector is oil and gas. And both of these sectors have been kneecapped by Liberal policies over the past decade or so. Everyone acknowledges that Canada has a serious productivity problem – which is a proxy for our standard of living – so policies that punish our most productive sector are foolish in the extreme. Manufacturing is also one of the greatest sources of innovation and well-paying employment, so the fact it is shrinking is not promising for Canada.
Other aspects of my presentation included the fact that the industrial carbon tax fuels inflation at a time when inflation is already a serious problem, and that it adds more complexity to the business environment with even more red tape. I also noted that comparisons with the EU, which the climate advocates were using as examples, were pretty irrelevant as Canada’s trade with the EU is about five per cent as compared with the U.S. at 75 to 80 per cent. The U.S. does not have an industrial carbon tax so the fact we do puts us at a serious competitive disadvantage with our largest trading partner.
The questions from Liberal MPs on the committee were perhaps predictable, but seemingly quite ill-informed about the impacts of the industrial carbon tax. They seemed not to be particularly aware of the reality that this tax, and many more like it that Liberals have imposed, have driven businesses and educated young people out of Canada. One of the MPs even accused me of spreading misinformation and disinformation. I would have loved to ask him if he thought Statistics Canada data was misinformation, as that is what formed the basis of my comments, but the challenge of appearing before these committees via Zoom instead of in person means they can cut you off at any time. Often even though a committee member accuses you of something dishonest, you don’t have the ability to respond. The Liberals clearly did not like my message as it rightly blamed them for many of Canada’s current problems, despite it being based on fact. If our so-called leaders cannot acknowledge the serious problems Canada faces, they surely won’t be able to solve them.
The Conservative MPs on the committee mostly asked me about what evidence I had for the businesses leaving Canada, and the impact this would have on job creation and economic growth. They also focussed on the impact of the industrial carbon tax on SMEs, and how it compared to other taxes and regulations imposed by the government. One Conservative MP noted how when he spoke to people in his riding, he mostly heard of the great difficulties people were having coping with the high cost of living and inflation. He also noted that there had been many job losses in industries in his riding, and businesses moving to the U.S.
Overall, this committee experience was very disappointing as it showed this Liberal government does not comprehend the magnitude of the economic problems Canada faces and certainly did not have any understanding of the problems facing SMEs in Canada. As SMEs represent about half of our GDP and the lion’s share of new job creation, this is a serious blind spot. Instead, Liberal members of the committee seemed to have a naïve belief in the necessity for an industrial carbon tax, despite the fact it is clearly damaging our economy and our standard of living and accomplishing little if anything for the climate. It doesn’t give one much confidence in the ability of this government to solve our many serious problems. If these MPs were any indication, it seems this Liberal government is truly flying blind.
She has published numerous articles in journals, magazines & other media on issues such as free trade, finance, entrepreneurship & women business owners. Ms. Swift is a past President of the Empire Club of Canada, a former Director of the CD Howe Institute, the Canadian Youth Business Foundation, SOS Children’s Villages, past President of the International Small Business Congress and current Director of the Fraser Institute. She was cited in 2003 & 2012 as one of the most powerful women in Canada by the Women’s Executive Network & is a recipient of the Queen’s Silver & Gold Jubilee medals.
