Ottawa, ON – The Honourable Andrew Scheer, the Leader of Canada’s Conservatives and of the Official Opposition, issued the following statement on the cabinet decision to approve the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion:
“Today’s cabinet approval of the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion will come as no surprise. This will, in fact, be the third time the Liberals approve this project. Approving it for a third time is meaningless.
“The question is when will it get built. The Liberals still have absolutely no plan for construction.
“After approving it for the first time in 2016, Justin Trudeau and the Liberals failed to demonstrate the leadership and political will to get it built.
“So, with the project in jeopardy, the government purchased it with $4.5 billion in taxpayer dollars. This sent a message to the world that the only way to get a big project built in Canada is to have the government nationalize it.
“Despite these approvals, not a single inch of new pipeline has been laid and not a single ounce of dirt has been moved. These delays have cost Canadians billions in economic activity.
“Today’s cabinet decision gets us no closer to having this vital, job-creating protect than we were when it was first approved two and a half years ago.
“Justin Trudeau has said he wants to “phase out” Canada’s oil and gas sector. For once, all is going according to his plan.
“Fortunately, Canada’s Conservatives have a plan to get pipelines built.
“We will cancel the Trudeau carbon tax, repeal the No-More-Pipelines Bill C-69 and Oil-Export-Ban Bill C-48, establish clear timelines for approvals, eliminate foreign interference in the approvals process, and invoke federal jurisdiction when necessary.”
