MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — Ontario Premier Doug Ford says his government will introduce legislation that would put any future provincial carbon pricing program to a referendum.

He used the announcement today in Mississauga, Ont., to take several shots at Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie, who was until recently the mayor of that city, and who recent polls suggest could pose a threat to Ford’s Progressive Conservatives in the next election.

Since Crombie became the front-runner in the Liberal leadership race in the fall, Ford and his caucus have often attacked the now-leader of the third place party, rather than spending time talking about the Official Opposition NDP.

Ford has dubbed Crombie “the queen of the carbon tax,” suggesting she championed it when she was a federal Liberal MP, and parroted language used in Progressive Conservative attack ads against her.

The carbon pricing referendum legislation would just refer to provincial measures, not the federal carbon pricing system that went into effect in Ontario after Ford’s government cancelled the previous provincial Liberal government’s cap-and-trade program.

The government says the carbon pricing referendum legislation will be part of a larger bill titled the Get It Done Act, to be introduced after the legislature resumes sitting next week. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 13, 2024.

The Canadian Press