Group created at request of top corporate lobby discussed reducing regulations and creating “opportunities” post-pandemic, documents show
The federal government formed a secretive working group with the country’s most powerful oil lobby during the coronavirus pandemic, discussing reducing regulations, strengthening “investor confidence,” and creating post-pandemic opportunities for the industry, documents obtained through Access to Information reveal.
If we continue to equate carbon pricing with ambitious climate action, we’ll stay on track to sous vide the planet within a decade.
This past Thursday, Canada’s Supreme Court delivered a blow to Conservative premiers across the country, ruling that the federal government’s imposed carbon tax is constitutional.
Last year was $8.2 billion less painful for 77 big fossil fuel companies, thanks to a tax bailout provision in a big pandemic stimulus bill.
The tax-law change did little, however, for nearly 60,000 workers those companies fired, leaving them stretching the $1,200 checks they received under the same law. Individuals were not eligible for the CARES Act loophole, which allows big polluters to reduce past taxes owed based on their recent yearly losses.
The cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline project by a new, climate-focused U.S. president is the latest major blow to Canada’s fossil fuel industry. But it’s no secret that even before the COVID-19 pandemic decimated the economy, the sector was already reeling from falling demand and low global oil prices.
SFU team says rising construction costs, new climate change measures mean project should be shelved
The estimated construction cost for the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion has ballooned from $5.4 billion to $12.6 billion. (Jason Franson/Canadian Press)
