Parliamentary budget officer Yves Giroux said that the Liberals are hiding an economic analysis they’ve done on the effects of the carbon tax, and he’s been told not to share it with the public.
Despite the fact the Liberals have been criticizing Giroux’s report that states the majority of Canadian families are harmed by the Liberals’ carbon tax more than they’re helped by the rebates, Giroux said the Liberals did they own analysis that confirms his report.
“We’ve been told explicitly not to disclose it and reference it,” Giroux said, later adding “It confirms the report that we have published.”
The budget watchdog Giroux, whose 2022 report has been the subject of fierce debate between the governing Liberals and Opposition Conservatives over what it says about the carbon tax, made the surprising comments on Monday as a finance committee witness.
He later told Liberal MP Ryan Turnbull, who was challenging Giroux over his report, “The government has these numbers on the economic impact of carbon pricing.”
He added: “And that’s your government sir. They have not published anything.”
Asked by Conservative MP Marty Morantz if the Liberals have “put a gag” on Giroux to refrain from talking about the Liberals’ secret analysis, Giroux stated: “That is my understanding.”
Carbon tax debate
The PBO’s conclusions have been repeated by the Opposition Conservatives, while the Liberals have criticized the report, and cherry-picked one line from it that states 8 out of 10 Canadians will get more money back in rebates than they’ll pay in the carbon tax.
However, as per Giroux’s report, “When both fiscal and economic impacts of the federal fuel charge are considered, we estimate that most households will see a net loss.”
The back-and-forth on the true cost of the carbon tax between the Trudeau Liberals and just about everyone else escalated in April when Alberta Premier Smith responded to an open letter from academic economists who supported the tax, by suggesting that they’re “ivory tower” ideologues who need to step into the “real world.”
