Discussion · Government Orders
Patrick Bonin Bloc Québécois
“I oppose this bill. We do not need it to build clean energy, because Quebec is already doing that. This bill just speeds up oil and gas pipelines to help Alberta. It will cost billions of public dollars and make climate change worse.”
“Madam Speaker, with all due respect to my colleague, that is ridiculous. It is ridiculous to say that we need to pass Bill C‑39, which is a giant setback for the environment, workers’ rights and democracy, in order to develop renewable energy projects. We are already doing that. Projects like the one in Churchill Falls are already under way in Quebec. We have been doing that for decades. We do not need superpowers. What the Liberals want to do with Bill C‑39 is essentially develop oil and gas companies and pipelines, undermine the fight against climate change and fast-track these projects. Who are they trying to please? They want to please Alberta using Quebeckers’ money. We are talking about billions of dollars to develop projects that will accomplish nothing. In fact, we are going to pay for them three times over: first, for the pipeline, which will cost $43 billion, second, for the carbon capture and storage project, which will cost $10 billion in public funds, and third, for all the costs associated with the climate impacts we are already experiencing, like droughts, heat waves and floods, not to mention the issues of rising grocery prices—”
Madam Speaker, with all due respect to my colleague, that is ridiculous. It is ridiculous to say that we need to pass Bill C‑39, which is a giant setback for the environment, workers’ rights and democracy, in order to develop renewable energy projects. We are already doing that. Projects like the one in Churchill Falls are already under way in Quebec. We have been doing that for decades. We do not need superpowers. What the Liberals want to do with Bill C‑39 is essentially develop oil and gas companies and pipelines, undermine the fight against climate change and fast-track these projects. Who are they trying to please? They want to please Alberta using Quebeckers’ money. We are talking about billions of dollars to develop projects that will accomplish nothing. In fact, we are going to pay for them three times over: first, for the pipeline, which will cost $43 billion, second, for the carbon capture and storage project, which will cost $10 billion in public funds, and third, for all the costs associated with the climate impacts we are already experiencing, like droughts, heat waves and floods, not to mention the issues of rising grocery prices—