Quebec becomes last province to have carbon price

As Quebec becomes the last province in Canada that hasn't abandoned carbon pricing, the province could start feeling pressure to align itself with the rest of the country.

As Quebec becomes the last province in Canada that hasn’t abandoned carbon pricing, the provincial government could start feeling pressure to align itself with the rest of the country.

There has long been a broad consensus in Quebec on the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and the province’s cap-and-trade system, launched in 2013, has never been especially controversial.

But some say Prime Minister Mark Carney’s decision to scrap the federal consumer carbon price could change that — especially once Quebecers notice the difference at the pump.

As of Tuesday, the federal carbon price, which applied in most provinces and territories, has officially been scrapped. British Columbia, which was the first province to impose its own carbon price in 2008, has also repealed its tax.

Asked Monday about whether he should act in kind, Premier François Legault said he would wait to see the outcome of the April 28 federal election. “We definitely have to be competitive,” he told reporters during a trip to Germany.

He added that Quebec’s cap-and-trade system “ultimately costs less for the consumer” than the federal carbon price did.

With the federal measure now gone, however, critics of carbon pricing say it’s only a matter of time before Quebecers start to feel pain at the pump. “When we compare prices between Gatineau or Montreal and Ottawa … that difference is going to be striking,” said Carol Montreuil, a vice-president with the Canadian Fuels Association.

“I think a lot of people are going to be questioning whether maybe it’s time to put a pause on that (cap-and-trade) system.”