Carney tells EU: ‘Carbon is trade’ — amid fears of carbon tariffs
During the election campaign, Carney quietly discussed carbon tariffs on imported goods. It would supposedly ensure the competitiveness of domestic industry, who pay the industrial carbon tax.
Prime Minister Mark Carney and EU allies shared a “carbon” vision at the latest EU Summit. “Carbon is trade,” Carney said June 23 in Brussels.
The remarks correspond with a shared desire to integrate ‘climate change’ policies in trade between countries, according to the Epoch Times. It followed questions on a proposed carbon border adjustment mechanism by the European Union.
“The future of trade does take carbon into account,” Carney said during a Monday press conference, concluding the Summit.
A carbon border adjustment mechanism, or a tariff on imported goods based on their manufacturing emissions, will be implemented in 2026, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The report references a draft US-EU agreement that exempts U.S. products for one year, when finalized and implemented. It would target goods at high risk of "carbon leakage" (e.g., steel, cement, fertilizers), which happens when a company moves production to a place with looser emission regulations, lowering emissions there but raising them elsewhere.
EU Commission President von der Leyen would not confirm the report Monday, stating, "Everything is negotiated."
Carney says his industrial carbon tax is crucial to Canada's economy because a "requirement" to trade with the UK, EU and Asia is to have a "price on carbon." pic.twitter.com/SaOQNJqDHS
— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) March 17, 2025
Carney, formerly a climate policy advocate and U.N. envoy, scrapped the consumer carbon tax in March upon becoming prime minister, citing its divisiveness after years of Conservative campaigning to “axe the tax”.
On March 17, three days after axing the consumer carbon tax, Prime Minister Carney visited Europe to discuss U.S. tariffs and defend the industrial carbon tax. He later vowed to maintain the levy (OBPS), aligning with the Liberal Party's platform that "big industrial polluters" should "bear the cost of achieving our climate targets."
During the campaign, Carney quietly discussed carbon tariffs to protect Canadian industries from the industrial levy, a mechanism the Department of Finance states can “help ensure that imported goods face the same carbon costs as domestically produced goods.”
A joint statement after the summit called ‘climate change’ an “existential threat” requiring “ambitious” action. It urges the deployment of carbon taxes, removal and industrial decarbonization to achieve a ‘net-zero’ economy.
Rebel News attempted to reach the Prime Minister’s Office for clarification but did not receive comment at publication.
“Given Carney’s long-standing support for higher carbon taxes, it’s logical to assume that while he has gone silent on his carbon pricing policies, he hasn’t abandoned them,” wrote Lorrie Goldstein in a Toronto Sun column.
Alex Dhaliwal
Journalist and Writer
Alex Dhaliwal is a Political Science graduate from the University of Calgary. He has actively written on relevant Canadian issues with several prominent interviews under his belt.
Help fund Alex's journalism!
Featured Stories
13:41
COMMENTS
-
Bernhard Jatzeck commented 2025-06-26 21:45:37 -0400Did anybody seriously believe Carney with his carbon tax “abolition” guff? -
Bruce Atchison commented 2025-06-26 19:30:37 -0400It’s a GREEN SCAM, just like Trump said. Carbon dioxide is a life-giving gas. Plants can’t exist without it. But we have reprobates wanting humanity to go back to pre-industrial days when crop productivity was poor and so were most of the peasant class on earth. Sri Lanka tried to go green and their productivity of food plummeted. But these idiots want us to do the same here. May reality mug them good and hard.
