Leader of the Conservative Party Pierre Poilievre rises during Question Period, in Ottawa, on May 22.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
For weeks now, forest fires have been raging in many parts of the country. This isn’t new, of course. But the fact so many are already lighting up northern skies is unusual.
Or at least, it was.
Parts of Fort McMurray, Alta., were evacuated just over a week ago, reviving grim memories of the wildfire that destroyed much of the city in 2016. More than 4,000 residents of Fort Nelson, B.C., were also recently ordered to flee their homes amid a fire closing in on that community.
This is the new normal in Canada, and a bracing reminder of the effects of climate change. What better time, then, to call on the federal government to drop gas taxes that are aimed, in part, at driving down carbon-dioxide emissions from automobile use?
That illogic is precisely at the root of federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s latest pitch to cash-strapped Canadians who may be considering forgoing a summer-vacation road trip because of high gas prices.
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Given that Mr. Poilievre has been in campaign mode for months now, a summertime gasoline-tax break is a very clever ploy. While gimmicky – like so many of his ideas – it will appeal to a broad swath of the public. But it also underscores an extremely important reality: Mr. Poilievre’s complete and utter contempt for any type of serious conversation around climate change and the initiatives needed to fight it in this country.
Mr. Poilievre would rather walk across the country with pebbles in his shoes than talk about carbon emissions and what we can do in Canada to meet our obligations under the Paris accord. He has refused to say whether he’ll honour our commitments under the 2015 climate agreement, which includes reducing emissions by 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030.
Now, for all their grand talk, the federal Liberals haven’t made the inroads in reducing emissions that they promised, either. And Prime Minister Justin Trudeau destroyed his credibility around the carbon tax by giving Atlantic Canada a break on home heating oil for political considerations. That said, at least the Liberals have a plan, and are not shy about talking about it while continuing to pursue their goals.
Mr. Poilievre, on the other hand, looks like he’d rather talk about the sex habits of iguanas than anything to do with climate change. But while this has been a sore point for progressives, it’s now become a source of concern for the oil industry.
Yes, the oil industry.
Do you know how badly out of touch you must be on the issue of climate change in order for oil industry leaders to be concerned? But recently, Derek Evans, the new head of the oil sands group Pathways Alliance, said Mr. Poilievre needs to clarify where he stands on industrial carbon pricing. Mr. Evans told the CBC last week that a “carbon policy is going to be absolutely critical to maintain our standing on the world stage.”
Mr. Poilievre has been loud and clear about his desire to get rid of the federal carbon tax. He’s been less vocal about where he stands on the federal carbon price for industrial-scale emitters. In remarks that would have surprised many, considering that Pathways represents a consortium of companies responsible for 95 per cent of oil sands production, Mr. Evans said he was “sick and tired of all of the talk and the lack of action” when it comes to addressing climate change.
Well, he would appear to be in for a rude awakening if Mr. Poilievre’s Conservatives form the next government in Ottawa. At least until the next election is over, any conversation about climate change would appear to be a forbidden topic among Conservatives. Mr. Poilievre clearly understands that the subject is not one that excites a broad swath of his political base. And the last thing he wants to do is upset some of those folks so much that they go running to – or back to, in some cases – the People’s Party of Canada.
Much easier to stay mum on the subject or, even better, pretend you don’t care. It’s a strategy that, for now at least, doesn’t appear to upset those who believe action on climate change needs to be taken. Their disdain for Justin Trudeau and their desire for change appears to be winning the day.
Which is fine. And certainly their right. Just spare us the hand-wringing when Canada becomes an international pariah over its appalling lack of action to save the planet from burning up.
By that point, our attention will likely be even more focused on the forest fires ripping through our country. The climate debate will be even further obscured by all the smoke.