OTHER PARTIES REFUSE TO SIGN NDP LETTER ON CLIMATE CHANGE
The Yukon New Democratic Party is very disappointed with the Yukon and Liberal parties for refusing to sign a letter urging Prime Minister Stephen Harper to commit to bold actions to address global climate change before attending the international conference in Copenhagen.
“Neither the Yukon’s Environment minister nor the leader of the Yukon Liberal Party agreed to sign our letter, which calls on Canada to take specific steps to address the greatest threat facing our planet today,” says Todd Hardy, the party’s environment critic. “This really surprises me, because both have said publicly they support measures that will reduce our country’s emissions of dangerous greenhouse gases.”
However, the New Democratic Party will continue to call for the policy changes that are so desperately needed if we hope to stop the rise in global temperatures that are causing icecaps and glaciers to melt, seas to rise, deserts to expand and putting the survival of people and animals in jeopardy.
The letter calls on Canada to,
(1) Commit to a medium-range target of reducing Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions to a level that is 25-per-cent below the 1990 level by the year 2020;
(2) Commit to a long-term target to reduce Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions to a level that is 80-per-cent below the 1990 level by the year 2050;
(3) Establish a carbon tax and cap-and-trade system; and
(4) Create a series of incentive programs to lower fossil fuel consumption.
“We sent the letter to Mr. Harper today,” Hardy adds. “Unfortunately, it will not have the signature of either Elaine Taylor or Arthur Mitchell, and that is a real shame, because it would carry more weight.
“I said today in the legislative assembly, when I challenged them to sign, that these measures alone will not solve the challenges all countries face. But it is a good first step in the right direction and shows other nations that Canada is willing to lead by example. As internationally acclaimed climate change expert George Monbiot says, ‘Canada’s image lies in tatters. It is now to climate what Japan is to whaling.’”