More than 230 academic economists have signed an open letter to the leaders of the federal political parties, urging them to acknowledge that putting a price on carbon is “the best approach” to combatting climate change.
And yet Stephen Harper thinks such an idea is ‘crazy’.
The economists argue that pricing encourages innovation because users of carbon-intensive goods will demand alternatives. Regulation is the most expensive way to meet the goal because users don’t have a choice, the letter says.
In a well-designed carbon-tax strategy, increases would be introduced gradually and announced ahead of time, providing consumers with some certainty and allowing them to make decisions based on what they know is coming.
But what do economists think of his plan to reduce GHG emissions?
Three top economists, led by Dr. Mark Jaccard of Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, have released an analysis (attached) of the Conservative government’s climate policy, saying that, as designed, the might make no headway whatever in reducing Canadian CO2 emissions.
As Roger Pielke, Jr. (who plays the role of a denier on the internet, but in reality isn’t one) says:
It is high time we started calling cap and trade what it really is — tax and charade.
If anyone is crazy, it would definitely be Harper.
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