Andrew Weaver, John Horgan
The day after the May 9 provincial election in British Columbia, the Council of Canadians posted this online action alert calling on Green Party leader Andrew Weaver and NDP leader John Horgan to work together to stop Liberal premier Christy Clark’s extreme energy agenda, notably the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain tar sands pipeline and the Site C hydro-electric dam on the Peace River.
Over the past eight days, more than 1250 people responded and sent an email to both party leaders on this issue.
Last night, The Globe and Mail reported on a media conference in which, “[Weaver] highlighted large gaps between his Green Party and the Liberals on several key issues, including the expansion of the Kinder Morgan oil pipeline, which the Liberals have approved, and the construction of the Site C dam, Ms. Clark’s pet mega-project.”
Weaver says, “The fact that we are being told to ship diluted bitumen in our coastal waters is just reckless, and this government is just reckless for agreeing to it. …We believe we need to support the First Nations in B.C. who are in court now.”
That said, Weaver has not put environmental issues on his list of three non-negotiable demands (a ban on union and corporate donations, a commitment to proportional representation, official party status for the Greens), and he maintained yesterday, “We can collaborate with anyone. We understand what compromise means.”
There is an increased urgency to this now.
The final seat count will be confirmed on May 24 and Weaver has just established a negotiating team — that includes Norman Spector, a chief aide to former prime minister Brian Mulroney — for talks with the Liberals and the NDP. Premier Clark says she has already had “good conversations” with both party leaders.
Our action alert says, “NDP and Green Party voters have clearly expressed opposition to Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline, Site C and the expansion of the LNG and fracking industry. They want B.C. to embark on a just energy transition process and ensure Indigenous rights are respected. The time for action and collaboration is now. Working together to address these pressing issues would be an earnest step in that direction.”
To add your voice to this demand, please click here.
The Council of Canadians is a non-partisan organization that endorses no political party, but rather is committed to building a peoples’ movement capable of holding any government accountable to the public interest.
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