
Feds’ stance on Trans Mountain weak, undermines Canadian unity, says Brad Wall
Bill Kaufmann
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Former Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall scorched the Trudeau’s government’s performance on the Trans Mountain pipeline dispute between B.C. and Canada Thursday, saying its energy policy is deepening national divisions.
And while Wall encouraged Canada’s premier to be remorseless in her fight in support of the pipeline’s expansion to the west coast, in his first interview since leaving politics last month, he also ridiculed Rachel Notley’s reliance on a carbon tax as a social licence to push energy exports.
Ottawa’s stance on a host of energy issues, culminating in what he calls its lukewarm support of the pipeline project amounts to another National Energy Program, (NEP), a federal policy from the early 1980s many in Canada blame for undermining the petroleum industry, said the ex-premier.
“We have to decide are we proud or ashamed to have a world-class energy resource, it’s paid a lot of bills in this country, transfer payments and a lot of jobs…because right now it looks like most of the country is ashamed of it,” Wall told Postmedia.
“It’s a source of shame for the federal government, for ministers of the federal government who will talk about the economy and environment living together but every single policy decision and even a lack of action on Trans Mountain lately indicates they’d just (prefer) this industry not exist here.”
Canada, he said, is in danger of losing its national cohesion in favour of provincial or regional self-interest as B.C. attempts to thwart Canada’s plans of moving oilsands bitumen to the west coast, he said.
“We’re at a crossroads. I’m worried about where we’re at,” said Wall.
“If you look at the cumulative effect of everything the federal government has done, we’re in the middle of NEP 2.0.”
Those comments came two days after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued his strongest words in backing the pipeline, saying B.C. premier John Horgan’s stance threatens to scuttle climate change action pushed by Canada as a social licence for energy development.
Ottawa has insisted the Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion will occur and says its officials have been working behind the scene to ensure it.
On February 2, Trudeau was relentlessly heckled by pipeline opponents at a town hall meeting in Nanaimo, B.C.
Some of those opponents have accused the federal government of ignoring scientific reports stating considerable uncertainty remains over the ability to limit damage caused by marine bitumen spills.
When asked if Notley is doing enough to further Canada’s interests with Trans Mountain, Wall said she can’t relent.
“She needs to continue to do everything, to leave no stone unturned, to make sure the implications of this are understood across the country,” he said, noting Notley’s boycott of B.C. wine and the creation of a task force on the dispute.
But he said Notley’s hopes that implementing a carbon tax would mitigate environmental concerns around energy projects have been both misguided and dashed.
“This notion around social licence is nonsense… for some of the NGOs who are fighting oil and the B.C. NDP in B.C. and the left in general, the self-immolation of a carbon tax has bought zero social licence,” he said.
Meanwhile, a survey of 938 respondents conducted last week by pollster Insight West shows 48% of British Columbians support the pipeline expansion while 44% are opposed.
The highest level of opposition was in Metro Vancouver with 49% not in favour.
Wall is speaking at March 12 luncheon at the Telus Convention Centre. Tickets are available at calgarychamber.com
BKaufmann@postmedia.com
on Twitter: @BillKaufmannjrn
Categorised in: Canadian News