Alberta government unveils Sovereignty Act motion against feds' emissions cap

The Alberta government will be fighting back against the Canadian government's proposed oil and gas emissions cap with the Alberta Sovereignty Act (ASA). Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said the government will be putting forward a motion under the ASA to ask the Legislative Assembly of Alberta for approval to shield the province if the emissions cap becomes law. “These actions could include an immediate constitutional challenge in the courts, a ban on provincial bodies enforcing the cap, labelling oil and gas production facilities as essential infrastructure subject to the Alberta Critical Infrastructure Defence Act, prohibiting the entry of all individuals into these facilities except those licensed to enter by the Alberta government, and declaring all information related to greenhouse gases at these facilities to be owned by Alberta’s government with data reported or disclosed at our discretion,” said Smith at a Tuesday press conference. “This is not a complete list of everything we plan to do, but it’s a sign of things to come.” Smith said the motion shows how the Alberta government will respond should the Canadian government force it to do so. If the motion passes, she said it will act fast to get ready for the emissions cap. This is because Albertans expect no less. She vowed it will defend Alberta’s prosperity, livelihood, and energy industry. With this motion, she said it “marks an important step in our pushback against federal overreach.” She added the Alberta government is telling the Canadian government its cap goes too far and is not the way federal-provincial relations should be.Instead, she said it would much rather co-operate with it to create a cleaner environment and a stronger, more prosperous country. If it listened to reason, she said Canada could have those. Since the Canadian government has chosen its path, she said the Alberta government has chosen its and will continue the fight for as long as it has to. From the moment it released the emissions cap, she said businesses and organizations have stood in opposition. One example she offered was Ninepoint Partners senior portfolio manager Eric Nuttall. Nuttall said the emissions cap is economic idiocy. Smith concluded by saying Albertans “are relying on us to stand firm on this, and we will not let them down.” Alberta Environment and Protected Areas Minister Rebecca Schulz said after years of trying to reason with the Canadian government, the province faces a choice — Secure its economic future and the livelihoods of Albertans or let Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sacrifice its prosperity to push his agenda. “As Premier said, we’re standing up for Alberta by creating a constitutional shield that will stop Liberal-NDP politicians in Ottawa from shutting down our oil and gas sector with an unconstitutional and reckless production cap,” said Schulz. “We’re forced to take this step because continuously, Ottawa refuses to listen.” Schulz said the Canadian government is insistent on implementing a production cap that will put hardworking people out of work and wipe out rural communities relying on the energy industry. Additionally, she said it will eliminate billions of dollars that goes towards schools, hospitals, and other services people rely on every day across Canada. Smith followed up by saying the emissions cap has been in place in its current design from before she became premier and Schulz was environment and protected areas minister. “Whitney Issik was writing letters to [Steven] Guilbeault to say the approach that you’re proposing will not work,” she said. “And so this has been out there floating around for a couple of years.” In response, she said the Alberta government has been advocating and working with the Canadian government to see if they can find some common ground. However, she noted all of this advocacy has not resulted in a proper resolution. Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi responded by saying this motion is about performance. “Literally not one thing that the premier announced today requires the Sovereignty Act to be done,” said Nenshi. “This is straight-up virtue signalling to say that we’re using the Sovereignty Act.” Nenshi said the one action it could do is reverse the onus on a legal challenge. In other words, the Alberta government would be in the same courtroom having the same legal arguments, but it could be sitting on the other side. Alberta government sources said to the Calgary Herald on Monday it will be pushing back hard against the Canadian government’s proposed oil and gas emissions cap on Tuesday. .Alberta government to unveil Sovereignty Act motion against emissions cap Tuesday .Smith would announce details about the ASA motion at a press conference. These sources said the motion will “make it virtually impossible for Ottawa to impose the cap in Alberta.”

Alberta government unveils Sovereignty Act motion against feds' emissions cap

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