The Coalition of Canadian Energy Trusts and Canadian Retired & Income Investors Association have launched a new campaign against plans to tax the trusts as traditional corporations.

"Broken promises will gravely impact our province and the whole country," says Sue Riddell Rose, co-chair of the CCET and president and chief executive of Calgary-based Paramount Energy Trust.

In October, Canadian finance minister Jim Flaherty presented a new tax plan that broke a campaign promise to not tax income trusts, the CCET says. The news resulted in a sell-down of Canadian trust units that represented a C$35-billion loss in market cap. The loss occurred across all Canadian trusts, including energy companies and other firms.

The federal government has also removed capital incentives from operators in the oil sands, the CCET reports.

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