Cory Morgan: Poilievre’s Proposal Is Poised to Test Carney’s Resolve on Energy Projects

Commentary

As Canada’s industries reel under ever-changing tariff burdens applied by U.S. President Donald Trump on Canadian products, it becomes clear that Canada must diversify its customer base for exports. The United States will always be Canada’s primary trading partner due to its size and proximity, but Canada will remain vulnerable to protectionist actions from presidents if it refuses to expand its capability to develop resources and deliver products to overseas customers.

It’s not for lack of demand that Canada is having difficulty in developing its resource export market. To the West, the growing economies in Asia which are democratic allies are hungry for Canadian products, from lumber to oil and gas, to coal, to metals. To the East, European nations are seeking alternative sources of resources so they can reduce their dependency on Russian resources. Canada’s worst enemy in exploiting these opportunities has been itself.

When leaders from Japan and Germany came to Canada, cap in hand and seeking to buy LNG, they were turned away by Justin Trudeau, who told them there is no business case for such exports. While that statement from the prime minister of the time caused rage among resource producers across Canada, Trudeau was correct. What Trudeau neglected to add though, was that it’s government regulations and policies that kill the economic viability of exporting more Canadian resources overseas.

It’s in the hands of Canada’s government to change the business environment in Canada, but it will take courage and leadership. The prime minister must strip away the regulatory hurdles to getting new resource projects approved and getting export infrastructure developed. The federal government has the constitutional authority to fast-track project approvals and to override provinces or indigenous groups in opposition to development, but it must find the fortitude to exercise it.

Prime Minister Mark Carney recognizes the need to get projects moving. That’s why Bill C-5 was rushed through the first parliamentary sitting in short order. The bill aims to expedite the approval and initiation of projects deemed to be in the national interest.

Unfortunately, though, the bill doesn’t appear to have the teeth required to overcome the inevitable opposition to projects from provinces and advocacy groups. Carney consistently says projects will happen once a consensus is reached, but it’s clear a consensus will never happen. The provincial governments of B.C., Manitoba, and Quebec have all come out in opposition to new pipelines, and some indigenous groups are opposing the development of Ontario’s mineral-rich “Ring of Fire” region. If Carney tries to appease all the opponents to Canadian developments, those developments will never happen.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre intends to make resource developments and exports a priority when the House of Commons sits next. His party will be tabling what they are calling the “Canadian Sovereignty Act,” which will be packed with specific proposals, including setting a timeline for project construction to begin by March 2026.

The chances of Poilievre’s bill becoming law are slim to none. Opposition bills rarely become policy. Tabling the bill could light a fire underneath the Carney government, however. Carney has been reticent in setting specific timelines or goals for development, and debate around the Canadian Sovereignty Act could compel him to make commitments.

The Canadian Sovereignty Act will propose scrapping Bill C-69, the Impact Assessment Act, dubbed by the government of Alberta as the “no more pipelines act,” and the West Coast tanker ban. Those two pieces of legislation have chilled investment in energy infrastructure.

The Impact Assessment Act allows politicians to play a game of soft opposition to oil and gas development, as they can claim that they welcome development but that no private interests will step forward to do so. Prime Minister Carney will be forced to either defend the legislation hampering energy infrastructure or commit to scrapping or amending it. Discussions around the bill will force the government to take a solid stance.

Mark Carney has been the prime minister for less than a year. Understandably, it will take some time to get changes in place with his new mandate, but patience will wear thin quickly. Jobs are at risk today, and he was elected under the premise of dealing with an immediate crisis due to the trade war.

Canadians will be expecting action from the government when it resumes sitting this fall. If the government appears to be dragging its feet with resource development, Pierre Poilievre could steal the messaging and the momentum on the issue. Last spring’s parliamentary sitting was just long enough for Prime Minister Carney to get his feet wet in his new role. This fall, his will to support increased energy and resource exports will be tested by a veteran of political brinkmanship in the House of Commons. The honeymoon is over.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.