ALT-TAX — If you thought the spike-the-hike campaign would end April 1, think again.
The Liberals’ latest budget-announceables blitz clashed with the anti-carbon-tax campaign for attention Monday as they sought to put a school lunch program at the fore. The tax inched up. Everyone dug down. News of the day, for the umpteenth time. Newfoundland and Labrador’s Liberal Premier ANDREW FUREY set up Monday’s news cycle by posting an open letter to Trudeau calling for a meeting on alternatives to the carbon tax and a pause while Newfoundlanders feel the pinch of the affordability crisis. He also stated Canada has a “strong balance sheet” and called for “bold investments” from Ottawa to reduce emissions. — Get in line: That, after a lineup of premiers testified last week at a Commons committee railing against the tax: SCOTT MOE, DANIELLE SMITH and BLAINE HIGGS. — Point to ponder: Columnist AARON WHERRY lamented the lack of substantive policy debate on last week’s “At Issue” panel: “Not to pine for the days of first ministers’ conferences, but I do wonder what would happen if the prime minister invited every premier to come to Ottawa with a fully costed and independently analyzed plan for how their province was going to reduce emissions by as much as the national target. What would they come to Ottawa with? What would the alternatives be, exactly?” — Change the channel: Furey’s move, along with protests at some 15 locations across the country that delayed traffic, helped drive questions at PMJT’s budget presser. That prompted a lengthy response from Trudeau involving multiple mentions of putting more “money in people’s pockets” via carbon rebate checks. “All those premiers that are busy complaining about the price on pollution, but not putting forward a concrete alternative that they think would be better for their communities are just playing politics,” Trudeau replied. “We're not seeing detailed plans from the premiers on this.” At a press event ahead of a rally in Nanaimo, B.C., Conservative Leader PIERRE POILIEVRE vowed the next federal race will be a “carbon-tax election,” declaring Monday’s hike a cruel April Fools’ joke played on Canadians and signaling the battle that raged over the past few weeks will play out all over again. “They want to raise it,” he said. “This is just the beginning.” (Poilievre is in B.C., which has its own provincial carbon tax, for a stretch this week. He’s hosting two party fundraisers — one at the Tsawwassen Springs golf course on Wednesday, and then one in Campbell River at the Shelter Point Distillery Thursday.) — Where this is all headed: More not-very-sound-bitey clips where the Liberals defend and explain the levy-and-rebate system. But with the polls giving the impression the Conservatives are going to slow-walk toward a blowout victory come next election, Poilievre will find his own environment cred under increasing scrutiny and will be pressed by media to pony up policy alternatives. The Star Editorial Board took a swing at that Monday, criticizing him for taking a technology-reliant approach. “My approach is to green-light green projects,” Poilievre told reporters Monday. “We need a massive abundance of clean, green emissions-free energy, by giving fast permits and responsible permits for hydro dams, nuclear power, carbon capture and storage, offshore wave, tidal wave power.” — Jostling for attention: Trudeau and Finance Minister CHRYSTIA FREELAND’s main message of the day: a new C$1 billion national school lunch program, part of their atypical string of pre-budget unveilings planned through to April 16. The food program (provincial jurisdiction alert) will run over five years and aims to help 400,000 more kids a year access food in school on top of preexisting programs. Flanking the pair on TV screens: JENNA SUDDS, MARCI IEN, JOHN MCKAY, NATE ERSKINE-SMITH, JULIE DABRUSIN, JEAN YIP and RYAN TURNBULL. — Didn’t take long: NDP Leader JAGMEET SINGH narrowly got out ahead of it and called for that exact policy to be included in the budget, at an announcement held an hour earlier. “This is our demand,” he told reporters at a playground in Toronto. “We want to be very clear: we expect this to happen. We’re going to keep the pressure going.” — Related reading: CBC’s CHRISTIAN PAAS-LANG has the details: “Federal government commits to creation of national school food program” | 
