By Seth Klein

On November 19, Justin Trudeau’s federal government tabled its long-awaited bill seeking to embed new greenhouse gas reduction targets into law. But sadly, Bill C-12, dubbed the “Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act,” provides virtually nothing in the way of robust accountability. In its current form it is, in short, a stunning disappointment and desperately in need of amendments to make the bill worthwhile. This is a moment for the NDP and BQ to use the powers and influence this minority Parliament affords them to demand improvements to C-12. And Liberal MPs who ran on climate need to make their voices heard. They need to exercise their political muscle, as this bill in its current state fails to reflect the urgency of the climate emergency. And all of us who want real climate accountability need to make sure all MPs know how we feel.

By Seth Klein

Premiers Jason Kenney and Scott Moe want to re-open equalization. It’s one of the prairie premiers’ core demands for a “new deal” with Canada. But that’s super messy. And besides, the equalization formula isn’t the problem; it’s more or less operating as intended, helping to ensure all provinces have equivalent capacity to fund similar levels of public services. Alberta has plenty of revenue capacity to fund its public programs. As the latest Alberta budget itself boasts, if Alberta taxed individuals and corporations at rates comparable to other provinces, it would have “at least $13.4 billion more in taxes.”

By Seth Klein

Last month, as part of the research for a book I am writing on mobilizing Canada for the climate emergency, I commissioned an extensive national public opinion poll from Abacus Data.* The full results of the poll can be found on the Abacus website here. I share highlights and my analysis below. Big picture: the results are hopeful and indicate a high level of support for bold and ambitious climate action. Canadians support systemic solutions that go well beyond what our governments have so far been willing to undertake