Ontario Premier Doug Ford made a surprise appearance this week at the Ontario Grain Farmers March Classic meeting in London, Ont.
Emerging from behind the curtain, Ford took to the podium to address a convention hall packed with grain producers and wasted little time addressing the issue that sparked much debate at the annual industry conference. . “We stand shoulder to shoulder with you in urging federal politicians to pass Bill C-234,” the Prime Minister said.
The challenging bill remains stalled in an amended House of Representatives bill after Liberal senators limited a proposed carbon tax exemption for natural gas and propane used on farms to drying grain, excluding heating barns and other on-farm uses. The Senate also shortened the minimum number of years the exemption would be in effect from eight years to three.
Mr. Ford went a step further in his remarks, calling on the Liberal government to abolish the tax completely. “It just goesuges people. It’s not beneficial. It hurts people,” he said. “All carbon tax systems are just terrible. They take money out of people’s pockets and raise the cost of every product you produce.”
Ford noted that the government passed legislation that would prevent the Ontario government from imposing a carbon tax without holding a referendum on the issue.
Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie also issued a statement this week saying her party would not introduce a provincial carbon tax if elected in the upcoming provincial election in 2026. Her statement made no mention of the federal Liberal Party’s carbon tax.
Watch Ford’s remarks at the March Classic in the video below.
