14 Liberal MPs pen letter to Carney raising concerns over environmental backslide

Liberal MP Steven Guilbeault may be the most outspoken, but he’s not the only member of his party unhappy with Prime Minister Mark Carney’s environmental rollbacks. 

Carney signed a new agreement with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith last week that could see construction on an oil pipeline to the West Coast start as early as September 2027. It also includes a plan to increase Alberta’s industrial carbon price, though at a slower pace than previously projected.

Fourteen Liberal MPs sent a letter to the prime minister at the end of April, before the agreement with the Alberta government was even signed, to offer some recommendations — but also to express their unease with the situation.

Despite signing their names at the bottom of the letter, the MPs do not want to be publicly identified, stating that their approach is intended to be constructive and respectful. 

“We remain deeply concerned; the government’s credibility will be seriously compromised,” said the signatories of the letter, which was obtained by Radio-Canada.

WATCH | Liberals’ proposed changes to pipeline reviews ‘take us back decades,’ Guilbeault says:

Liberals’ proposed changes to pipeline reviews ‘take us back decades’: Guilbeault

The federal government is hoping to fast-track the approval of major projects including pipelines and energy projects. They’ve proposed legislative changes aimed at completing review processes within a year, prompting pushback from former Liberal environment minister Steven Guilbeault. Power & Politics asks Guilbeault about his concerns, and what it means for his position in the Liberal caucus.

The 14 MPs come from across the country, including Quebec and British Columbia.

Specifically in response to the concessions being granted to Alberta, the elected officials reiterated the importance of “supporting the clean electricity regulations.” And more generally, they emphasized that “climate change remains the greatest threat of our time.”

At the time of writing, the Prime Minister’s Office had not responded to a request for comment.

Bloc Québécois calls on disgruntled MPs to speak out

The Bloc Québécois is aiming to use the few remaining weeks of the parliamentary sitting before the summer recess to convince Liberals who are sensitive to climate issues to speak out. 

“We will use all the parliamentary tools at our disposal to make the voices of those who haven’t disappeared, who remain concerned about the climate crisis, heard,” Bloc MP Patrick Bonin said in a French interview.

So far, only Guilbeault — who left Carney’s cabinet after the initial MOU Carney and Smith signed last fall — has publicly voiced his criticism of Carney’s most recent proposals to weaken environmental regulations in order to attract an investor for a potential pipeline in Alberta.

But Bonin said he hopes more Liberals come forward publicly. 

“We obviously hope that there are people within the Liberals who will stand up and say, no, you were not elected on a platform that is essentially the agenda of the oil and gas companies, which is currently being implemented,” the Bloc environment critic said.