TORONTO -- The premier of Ontario says a federal carbon tax will plunge the country into recession.

Doug Ford says the federal Liberal government's climate plan will trigger an economic downturn.

In his address to the Economic Club of Canada today, the premier said there are already warning signs of difficult economic times ahead.

Ford renewed his calls for the Trudeau government to abandon its plan to put a price on carbon, and vowed to fight the policy.

He said Ontario does not need a carbon tax to help it reach its emission targets, pointing to his government's new climate change plan introduced late last year.

The Progressive Conservative government scrapped Ontario's cap-and-trade system after it was elected last spring