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Chong’s proposal sets him offside from the rest of the Conservative leadership candidates, every one of whom has pledged to undo the Liberal government’s plan to tax carbon. His break from the pack on the issue speaks to the challenge candidates face between building support with the CPC members, who will elect the party’s leader, and positioning themselves as someone who could win a general election. Fellow candidates Lisa Raitt and Kevin O’Leary have also made a point so far of talking about the bigger narratives at play in Canadian politics, and their ability to eventually beat Trudeau the next time the country goes to the polls.

If his stance on carbon pricing sets Chong apart from his rivals, it has also put him squarely in their crosshairs.

“I disagree with Michael’s approach. I don’t think the answers to problems are solved by new taxes,” said Saskatchewan MP and former House speaker Andrew Scheer, the candidate who has garnered the most support from his parliamentary caucus.

“I believe Canada can play a world leader in reducing emissions, but we only emit 1.6 per cent of emissions here,” Scheer told the Post Monday, citing an Environment Canada figure based on 2012 greenhouse gas data. “There are new coal-fired power plants coming online in China. We could be exporting our carbon capture technology. We could be exporting our clean coal technology.”

Another Ontario MP candidate, Kellie Leitch, took the opportunity Monday to reiterate that she would abolish the Liberal carbon tax, which imposes a 2018 deadline on the provinces to price carbon in line with federal guidelines. While “pollution is a complex issue,” Leitch said, she would instead focus on “a green economy so that we can innovate in the future and create jobs.”

Chong, however, insists that if the Conservatives have what he considers a realistic plan — and talk about it now, during the leadership race, rather than three weeks into a general election campaign years from now — it could prove an opportunity for the Tories to gain new support. “If we don’t have a credible policy to reduce emissions,” he said, “we cannot win the next election.”

Email:mdsmith@postmedia.com| Twitter:mariedanielles