Canada needs a clear statement from the Prime Minister on how to reconcile Canada’s essential energy production with entrenched opponents.
Canadians need a formal statement of federal pipeline policy from the top. The production, transport and use of fossil fuels is not a tawdry distraction from the elevated and noble business of governing. It is central to our prosperity and it’s time for a broad, coherent vision, complete with practical details, from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
As in most advanced nations, Canadians’ standard of living depends heavily on consumption of fossil fuels. But in our case it depends significantly on their production too, especially in Alberta, whose current difficulties should also bring our sense of compassion and regional fairness into play. The way the current messy and dysfunctional approval procedure is disintegrating risks undermining the entire process, and with it the ability to construct infrastructure that is essential to the national good.