Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe has sent another letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau with more details around his vision of a “new deal” and an invitation to meet in person.
It’s the second letter he has sent to Trudeau since the federal election on Oct. 21.
In it, Moe says, “I appreciated the opportunity to briefly speak with you the day after your re-election to express the frustrations of Saskatchewan residents and make some proposals to address those concerns.”
Moe once again outlined his three suggestions in Thursday’s letter — scrapping the carbon tax, renegotiating equalization and building pipelines so Saskatchewan can get its resources to market.
But this time, Moe went into a little more detail.
On cutting the carbon tax, Moe said he believes Saskatchewan has an “aggressive plan” to reduce carbon emissions.
“Your government accepted the heavy emitters portion of Saskatchewan’s plan, but still enacted the consumer portion of the federal backstop that imposes $20 a tonne carbon tax directly on Saskatchewan people,” Moe said in his letter.
Moe said as of Jan. 1, 2020, the federal carbon tax will increase by 50 per cent in Saskatchewan to $30 a tonne.
He’s asking Trudeau to place a one-year pause on the federal backstop in Saskatchewan, by removing the tax in 2020 as the province and federal officials work to re-evaluate Saskatchewan’s carbon-emission plans.
In terms of equalization, Moe said the “existing formula fails to address the economic reality” for Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Newfoundland and Labrador caused by challenges in their energy sector.
He’s asking Trudeau to commit to reforming the equalization formula in 2020 and to provide a “one-time, per capita payment” in the three provinces as an interim measure.
Moe would also like to speak to Trudeau regarding the government’s plan to build the Trans Mountain Expansion Project as quickly as possible.
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