As liberal parliamentarians prepare for a national meeting of Caucus in Edmonton next week, some aim to bring climate change to the avant -garde of the political agenda creating a formal caucus to discuss the issue.
The effort occurs when some parliamentarians express in silence the concern that Prime Minister Mark Carney has relegated green initiatives to the fund since he came to power.
“When I started as a member of Parliament, I noticed that there was not necessarily a Caucus to discuss the environment,” said the newly chosen deputy of Montreal, Éric St-Pierre in an interview with Radio-Canadá.
Together with the deputy of Nueva Scotia, Shannon Hydema, St-Pierre proposed to his colleagues to create a forum to discuss climatic problems, similar to those that already exist for issues of women and indigenous people.
After holding small virtual meetings during the summer, St-Pierre said that Caucus will have its first meeting in Person in Edmonton with an invitation extended to all liberal parliamentarians.
The deputy of Honoré-Mercier, who has experience in climate philanthropy, is not critical of Carney’s environmental history as a prime minister so far. He points out that the government is still new and expects proposals to be made in the coming months.
“I have enormous confidence in Mr. Carney and I think it is one of the prime ministers that has more knowledge about climate change problems,” he said.
But speaking with the condition that they are not named, two other parliamentarians say that Carney should be doing more to highlight their past role as the special envoy of the UN on climate action.
“People do not understand how someone who has defended the climatic problems for 15 years can suddenly become a G7 country and stop talking about climate change. It is not a word about it. What is happening?” A liberal deputy said.
“Mr. Carney has had a very strong environmental position in the past. We want to make sure it remains faithful to its values,” said another liberal deputy.
The first Carney movement after having sworn was to cancel the price of consumer carbon, one of the flagship climate policies of the Trudeau government that the former governor of the Bank of Canada had supported once.
In June, the adoption of bill C-5, whose objective is to accelerate the main infrastructure projects, including a potential pipe, also raised the eyebrows among some liberals behind the scene. Last week, the prime minister announced that Dawn Farrell, former CEO of Trans Mountain, will head the Government’s main project office.
“I want us to recover the environment as a central theme,” says Quebec Deputy Alexandra Mendes, who represents Brossard-Saint-Lambert and will participate in the first meeting of the Environmental Caucus next week.
“It is one of the key problems that people talk to me in my driving.”
The former leadership candidate, Karina Gould, associated with the most progressive wing of the party, will also attend the Environmental Caucus meeting.
“We are many of us [Liberals] They care deeply to combat climate change. This is an important voice that needs to be heard, “he said.
A necessary realignment, other liberals say
While some liberal members want to hear more about green initiatives, others are happy with Carney’s approach change.
Three members of Parliament, who speak with the condition that they are not appointed, said the government must achieve a balance between the development of energy and the fight against climate change.
“Under Mr. Trudeau, we had a very punitive environmental policy. He simply frustrated everyone,” said a parliamentarian.
The three parliamentarians believe that the current Carney position reflects the opinions of most Canadians.
In a Léger survey published in July, only four percent of respondents classified the environment as their main concern. The online survey included 1,546 Canadian adults and has a margin of error of 2.49 percent error 19 of 20.
The prime minister’s office was not available to comment. In a statement, the Director of Communications of the Minister of Environment, Jenna Ghassabeh, said that Carney “has been clear that fighting climate change, the protection of communities and the construction of Canada are the main priorities.”
The Government, he added, “continues to invest in community resilience, climate adaptation and mitigation programs in communities throughout the country.”
