Canadian Identity and Culture Minister and former environment minister Steven Guilbeault is resigning from Prime Minister Mark Carney’s cabinet.The resignation comes only hours after the federal government signed a new memorandum of understanding with Alberta committing to cooperation on major infrastructure and energy projects, including the possibility of a new oil pipeline to British Columbia’s northwest coast. The timing of the resignation and the agreement are directly linked..Guilbeault plans to remain in Parliament and continue sitting in the Liberal caucus.In a written statement accompanying his resignation, Guilbeault said there had been no consultation with indigenous nations on the West Coast or with the B.C. government before the Alberta agreement was announced. He warned that lifting the West Coast tanker ban and advancing a new export pipeline would carry major environmental and safety risks, increase climate pollution, and move Canada further from its emissions reduction targets.He argued exempting Alberta from federal clean electricity regulations in exchange for stricter industrial carbon pricing was, in his view, a serious mistake, reversing two decades of progress in reducing emissions from the power sector..Guilbeault also criticized the creation of what he described as a new fossil fuel subsidy tied to enhanced oil recovery, saying it contradicts commitments made by the federal government in 2024 to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies.He argued the Alberta deal would give oil and gas producers a competitive advantage at the expense of renewable energy and clean technology, undermine the creation of a marine conservation area on the West Coast, and jeopardize Canada’s climate credibility at home and abroad.In his official resignation statement, Guilbeault said he submitted his decision to Prime Minister Mark Carney “with great sadness,” noting he entered politics to advance climate action and environmental protection..He highlighted accomplishments such as Canada’s first emissions reduction plan, eliminating single-use plastics, and modernizing environmental legislation.Despite acknowledging economic pressures and geopolitical uncertainty, Guilbeault wrote that environmental issues “must remain front and center” and said he could not support the new Alberta memorandum of understanding, calling it incompatible with the climate progress Canada has made.The Alberta legislature erupted into applause when hearing that Guilbeaut had resigned."This day is full of incredibly good news. We got rid of the emissions cap, Mr. Speaker, we have a new pipeline coming here to Alberta, and we just learned that Steven Guilbeaut has resigned from the federal cabinet," Justice Minister Mickey Amery said.His departure marks a major turning point for one of Canada’s most high-profile environmental activists to enter federal politics. Before running for office, Guilbeault spent years in the climate movement, co-founding the environmental organization Équiterre and later becoming a senior figure within Greenpeace Canada..His activism regularly made headlines. In 2001 he scaled the CN Tower in Toronto to unfurl a massive climate protest banner. Months later, Greenpeace activists climbed onto the roof of then Alberta premier Ralph Klein’s Calgary home to install solar panels.The action, which Guilbeault helped organize, shocked the premier’s family and remains one of the most controversial environmental protests in Canadian politics.Supporters saw Guilbeault as a needed voice in a resource-heavy political landscape. Critics saw him as a hardline activist whose ideological positions clashed with industry and provincial interests.Reaction to his resignation began pouring in immediately, including from longtime Green Party leader Elizabeth May, who called the news “tragic for climate policy.”.“This is a sad decision and a pivotal moment,” May said. “If Steven Guilbeault is leaving cabinet, that is the last hope that Mark Carney will have a credible climate record. For years we assumed if anyone could convince him to act, it would be Steven.”May also warned that Guilbeault’s departure signals a broader political shift.“We need strong climate champions in Parliament,” she said. “So far Mark Carney has tacked right, embracing Pierre Poilievre’s positions as government policy. Without a strong progressive party to counterbalance it, there is nothing stopping this shift.”She urged voters to treat the resignation as a wake-up call.“Steven may have given up on Mark Carney. But Canadians cannot give up on climate action or on democracy,” she said. “Join us. Now is the time.”Neither Guilbeault nor the Prime Minister’s Office have issued public statements.
