HANNAFORD: Fail, and farewell

When we heard that Steven Guilbeault had been removed as environment minister by incoming prime minister Mark Carney, we went through the five stages of Kubler-Ross grievance in as many seconds. He was no friend to Western Canada.He was in particular an enemy of the energy industry, utterly committed to an interpretation of climate change that was widely accepted for a while but is now much in retreat everywhere in the world. Except Canada that is, where to the end Minister Guilbeault insisted on a death-spiral narrative ending with a world in flames.Since Mr. Guilbeault took post in 2021, the Western Standard has scrupulously recorded his more outrageous claims and actions, such as the federal demand (with an election approaching, now withdrawn) for Alberta to meet net-zero carbon emissions by 2035, (not possible) and his insistence on an emissions cap to limit oilsands production. He has also continued to advocate for the consumer carbon tax that has contributed so much to inflation during his term in office. (Also now withdrawn for an election — ostensibly, at least.)The list is illustrative, not exhaustive..We have also pointed out some ancient history — the youthful Guilbeault’s trespass on then-Premier Ralph Klein’s private residence and his trespass on Toronto’s CN Tower.To be succinct, Mr. Guilbeault’s sincerity has never been in doubt.He wisdom is another matter.For example, Paris Accord or not, major-emitters China and India continue to build high-emission, coal-burning power generation stations. One solution might have been to expedite the export of low-emission Alberta natural gas, to replace the high-emission coal. The response of the government Mr. Guilbeault serves however, fortified always by his own advocacy, was to shut down pipeline and west-coast LNG plant proposals that might have exported gas across the Pacific. Those with a taste for detailed recriminations may search Western Standard files, and find sufficient to satisfy them, no doubt. Here’s a few to start with..Report says Guilbeault's emissions cap will kill 112,900 jobs .Energy expert says Guilbeault's new climate targets 'draconian'.One asks why. It has always appeared that to Guilbeault, Trudeau and those they selected to drive their policies, that it was more important to show that a country like Canada could reduce its carbon dioxide emissions to next-to-nothing, than it was to bring about an actual net emission reduction worldwide. Hence positions taken, such as there being 'no business case' for Canadian natural gas exports to Germany.Whatever the reason, what was the goal? Bragging rights? A thumbs-up from the World Economic Forum?It's hard to know.It is also pointless now to speculate. For, in reluctantly ceding power to Mark Carney, Mr. Trudeau has ensured that the anti-Alberta, anti-energy policies championed during his ministry by Guilbeault, will be continued under the enthusiastic direction of the next prime minister.As my friend and colleague James Snell summarised it recently, "Both Trudeau and Carney emphasize aggressive climate action, with Trudeau implementing carbon taxes and renewable energy investments, while Carney, as a former central banker and UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance, championed net zero policies and green finance frameworks.".SCATHING: UK publication warns Canada about Carney.He did so most notably when in 2015 he gave his landmark climate change speech to the insurers Lloyds of London. In 'Breaking the Tragedy of the Horizon – climate change and financial stability,' Carney essentially told insurers that their business was in danger as climate change risks escalated. Given his position as Bank of England governor, this could be construed as a self-fulfilling prophecy. And indeed, since relinquishing his gubernatorial position and transitioning to UN Special Envoy on Climate Change, his consistent advice to investors has been to get out of oil and gas before they become stranded assets.We are not in the least deceived that he has now abandoned the carbon tax that he championed for so many years. He may have been whispering into Mr. Trudeau's ear for the last four years, but one says what one must, to get elected. Time enough to find new ways later, to make Canadians pay for using carbon.In other words, Trudeau and Guilbeault may be gone. But their policies are alive and well, and now rest in the hands of a prime minister who was their original prophet.

HANNAFORD: Fail, and farewell

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