Jack LaytonNew Democratic Party of Canada

Desmog Rating

8/10

New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton's platform on climate change is quite robust. But Layton has lost considerable credibility through his attacks on Liberal leader Stephan Dion's proposed carbon tax and on the carbon tax already in place in British Columbia.

Layton's criticism of the carbon tax is disingenuous at best - crass political opportunism at worst - an attempt to score cheap points against the Liberals that serves primarily to chip away at public support for action on climate change.

While Layton complains that carbon taxes affect consumers directly, his claim that the NDP cap-and-trade policy will only affect large corporations neglects to consider that those corporations will quickly pass costs along, leaving the consumers once again holding the bag.

The most effective greenhouse gas reduction plans would include both a carbon tax and a cap-and-trade system. A less cynical politician would admit it.