Budget 2019: Building a Clean Economy

OTTAWA, March 29, 2019 /CNW/ - Canadians' quality of life?and Canada's future growth?are deeply tied to the environment. Failing to invest in a cleaner, more sustainable future threatens the things Canadians rely on for their success: an affordable cost of living, good, well-paying jobs and resilient communities.

Today, Catherine McKenna, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, and Karen McCrimmon, Member of Parliament for Kanata?Carleton and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, were in Kanata to highlight Budget 2019, Investing in the Middle Class. The Budget makes significant investments to protect Canada's environment?while also helping create new jobs and make life more affordable for Canadians. These investments go hand-in-hand with efforts to help more people find a home, find and keep good jobs, retire with confidence, and get affordable prescription drugs when they need them.

Speaking at an electric vehicle charging station in Kanata, Minister McKenna and Parliamentary Secretary McCrimmon highlighted how investments in Budget 2019 would make it easier and more affordable for Canadians to choose zero-emission vehicles.

In Budget 2019, the Government proposes to protect Canadian families and the environment by:

• Lowering Canadians' energy costs with support to increase energy efficiency in residential, commercial and multi-unit buildings.
• Making it easier and more affordable for Canadians to choose a zero-emission vehicle by expanding the network of zero-emission vehicle charging and refuelling stations, and creating new incentives for people and businesses to purchase zero-emission vehicles.
• Providing new infrastructure to build cleaner and healthier communities through a major municipal infrastructure top-up investment. This will double the Government's commitment to municipalities and help communities fund their infrastructure priorities, including public transit, water and green energy projects.
• Promoting clean electricity by working with provinces and territories to develop a framework for a clean electric future that uses more clean, reliable and affordable electricity, including in rural and remote communities.
• Helping coal workers and communities prepare for, find and act on new opportunities through skills training and business diversification as Canada moves to phase out coal-fired electricity by 2030.
• Ensuring all Canadians have greater access to healthy, affordable and locally produced food by developing A Food Policy for Canada, which will tackle food insecurity, fraud and waste?and promote Canadian food both locally and abroad.

Quotes

 "Since 2015, our Government has been taking bold action to ensure that Canadians can benefit from a strong economy and a clean environment. Starting this year, it is no longer free to pollute anywhere in Canada. Our clean growth and climate action plan is expected to result in the biggest drop in carbon pollution in the history of Canada's emissions reporting?while creating more good, well-paying jobs in the clean economy and making life more affordable for Canadians. Budget 2019 continues that work, and will help Canadian communities in the ongoing fight against the devastating effects of climate change and pollution."
? Catherine McKenna, Minister of Environment and Climate Change

Quick facts

• The Government is investing more than $180?billion over 12 years to build infrastructure in communities across the?country.
• Working with provinces and territories, the Government has approved more than 33,000 infrastructure projects supported by federal investments of approximately $19.9 billion.
• Budget 2019 also makes investments in cleaning up abandoned mines in Canada's North and commits to continuing to explore the potential creation of a marine conservation area in the High Arctic Basin, in cooperation with the Government of Nunavut and the Qikiqtani Inuit Association.
• From ensuring there is a price on carbon pollution, to accelerating the phase-out of traditional coal electricity generation, to the $1.5 billion Oceans Protection Plan and investments in public transit and green infrastructure, the Government is making significant progress in transitioning to a cleaner economy.
• Since 2016, the Government has committed more than $9.4 billion to support Canadian scientists and researchers, including significant investments in the cutting-edge equipment needed to make scientific breakthroughs and drive innovation in the clean economy.
• Eligible residents of Ontario, New Brunswick, Manitoba and Saskatchewan can now claim Climate Action Incentive payments for their family, through their 2018 personal income tax returns. Most households will receive more in Climate Action Incentive payments than their increased costs resulting from the federal carbon pollution pricing system.
• Without immediate action, climate change will reduce Canada's quality of life and collective prosperity. Encouraging clean technology development and adoption will help Canadian businesses remain competitive in the global low-carbon economy.
• Budget 2019 proposes to invest $134.4 million over five years for a suite of new measures to support food policy priorities. In addition, $100 million over five years will be allocated from the Strategic Innovation Fund to support innovation in the food processing sector.

Associated links

• Budget 2019

Environment and Climate Change Canada's Twitter page

Environment and Climate Change Canada's Facebook page

SOURCE Environment and Climate Change Canada