Mike Schreiner, centre right, Leader of the Green Party of Ontario, is sworn in as an MPP during a ceremony at the Ontario Legislature, in Toronto on Thursday, July 5, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

TORONTO— Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner is decrying the Ford government’s decision to cancel cap-and-trade without first doing an economic analysis of the move.

Schreiner used his first ever question in the legislature on Tuesday to ask Premier Doug Ford if his government had studied the economic impact of scrapping the carbon price. Ford punted the answer to Environment Minister Rod Phillips who didn’t answer the question.

The former Liberal government’s cap-and-trade market with Quebec and California was “regressive,” Phillips said adding that it was “killing jobs and making life difficult for average Ontarians.”

[READ MORE: Top Trudeau advisor slams Ford on cap-and-trade]

Phillips’ refusal to answer the question is proof to Schreiner that no analysis was taken.

Before Ford’s government was sworn in, the premier announced he would be cancelling the cap-and-trade program that had already brought in $2.9 billion in revenues. He also cancelled all of the programs that the cash funded including school and social housing repairs and rebates for green energy retrofits.

“I think the government’s being reckless with our economy and with people’s lives. The fact that they’ve done no economic analysis of the effects of cancelling Ontario’s climate program I think it’s completely irresponsible,” he told reporters after question period.

When iPolitics contacted the government to verify whether the economic impact of the policy change had been studied, spokesperson Simon Jefferies said in a one-line reply “It will save the average family $285 per year, and is the necessary first step to reducing gas prices by 10 cents per litre.”

Schreiner argues that the cancelled program will also hurt businesses who he said are already calling him upset about cancelled programs like GreenON and electric vehicle rebates. “I’ve had so many businesses in my own riding phoning me upset about their loss of business,” he said.

The calls he said ranged from companies that do installations, window manufacturers and constituents who were counting on the money from the rebates to help fund energy retrofits.

[READ MORE: Abrupt scrapping of cap-and-trade in Ontario sparking anxiety for businesses]

Last week House Leader Todd Smith said cabinet was still studying the costs of unwinding cap-and-trade. The government is expected to table a bill in the current summer session to formally end the carbon pricing program. So far it has given few details about the plan including how long it will take to end cap-and-trade and whether companies who paid into the program will be reimbursed.

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce has called on the government to consult with businesses before making the changes.

“Ontario’s cap-and-trade program was implemented within a short time frame with limited stakeholder consultation. It is critical that the wind-down process not unfold in a similar fashion, but rather is a more methodical, collaborative and evidence-based approach,” the chamber’s president Rocco Rossi said in a statement.

Phillips has said cap-and-trade would be cancelled in an “orderly” fashion. He told the house on Tuesday the government will come up with “a plan that tackles the issue of emissions” but he said it won’t “punish ordinary Ontarians.”

“We’d like the taxpayers to have the dollars in their pockets,” Phillips said.

Ottawa has already promised to impose a carbon tax on Ontario if it does not have its own provincial price on carbon. And cash from the federal climate change fund that went to Ontario is also being reviewed.

Phillips will have his first meeting with Federal Environment Minister Catherine McKenna on Wednesday morning in Toronto. They are not holding a joint press conference after the meeting.

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