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But LeBlanc, who took on his new role as Ottawa’s emissary to the provinces in July, insisted that provincial governments are “acknowledging that we need a concerted national effort” to fight climate change.

“I’m actually not pessimistic in terms of the desire of provincial governments to recognize that putting a price on pollution is important,” he said.

Environment Minister Catherine McKenna told the provinces in December that they had until Sept. 1 to submit details of their carbon pricing plans, and that any province that failed to meet the federal benchmark would have a federal carbon tax imposed on it starting in January 2019. The federal price would start at $20 per tonne and increase to $50 per tonne by 2022.

On Friday, LeBlanc said that is still the plan, but wouldn’t discuss which provinces have missed the deadline, saying only that “there are some very positive and very effective measures” being proposed by the provinces. Eric Campbell, a spokesperson for McKenna, said the government has received submissions from “the majority” of provinces and territories.

“I think we’re going to be surprised at the extent to which different provinces and territories have worked to come up with plans that are appropriate for their economies and their geography,” LeBlanc said.

Despite LeBlanc’s optimism, Ottawa’s roster of provincial allies on carbon pricing is dwindling. Ontario and Saskatchewan have not formally submitted plans to the federal government — both provinces have said they will not consider economy-wide carbon taxes and will fight the federal tax in court.