THUNDER BAY – Professor Livio Di Matteo said the carbon tax is benefiting people who have a lower income.
The economic side measures the impact of the carbon tax on employment and income over the longer term. “The net effect – fiscal and economic – will actually be a net cost to households but again lower incomes will still see overall benefits due to the size of the rebate,” he said. “The direct effects – an increase in the cost of gas, fuel, etc. – will add about 0.15 of a percentage point to inflation - or about 1/20th or five per cent of the current inflation rate of 2.8 per cent.”
“But again, the question is if there is not to be a carbon tax, what is the alternative? And that alternative will also not be costless. Everything has a price,” Di Matteo said.