SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 67 - May/9/22

Ms. Yvonne Jones (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources and to the Minister of Northern Affairs, Lib.)

May/9/22 6:51:59 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the ongoing tragedy unfolding before our eyes in Europe is one that I know everyone is concerned about. Regardless of political persuasion, we are all sickened by what Russia is doing to its neighbour, so it is no surprise that this is one of those issues before Parliament where opposing parties sometimes will largely agree. For one thing, we share the view that this war represents a defining challenge for the democratic world. We also agree that Canada must work with allies to provide equipment to help Ukraine's brave soldiers fight off this unprovoked aggression. All parties support the democratic world's punishment sanctions: a package that includes a Canadian ban on imports of oil, gas and other petroleum products from Russia. Furthermore, we are united in doing everything we can to deal with this humanitarian disaster. We also share the member opposite's belief in the critical importance of energy security, and the need for Europe and the world to reduce and eventually eliminate its dependency on Russian oil and gas. There is nothing here that he needs to convince us of. It is clear that the world must stand up to Russian aggression, and that is what we are doing. We are taking all the measures I have just cited, and are working closely with our allies to help Europe wean itself off of this dependency. I would invite the member to consider our government's work with industry and provincial governments. The Government of Canada has identified Canadian industry capacity that can increase production by up to 200,000 barrels of oil and the equivalent of 100,000 barrels of natural gas. These exports will give America, now the world's largest LNG exporter, more leeway to export its petroleum products to Europe and other markets. I would agree that this alone is a relatively small proportion of the amount of Russian oil and gas that we have to displace, but solidarity matters. The U.S., Brazil and other nations are also stepping up. We would once again urge members opposite to consider the International Energy Agency's 10-point plan to end its dependency on Russian gas. It includes moving Europe more aggressively toward alternatives, such as increased imports of LNG, renewables and hydrogen, and that is exactly what we are doing with our climate plan. It is one that includes a strategy to build a Canadian hydrogen industry that could help fill this void. On that note, I am pleased to say that Germany's ambassador recently referred to Canada as a potential hydrogen superpower. What I just outlined really illustrates why it would be the worst time to abandon Canada's clean energy transition. We all have a job to do here. We all need to step up to protect the interests of Canadians, but also the interests of allies around the world.

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Context: House Hansard - 67 - May/9/22

Ms. Yvonne Jones

May/9/22 6:56:44 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, our government recognized our role in global energy security long before this tragedy started to unfold and long before the member opposite stood in the House of Commons. In fact, energy security was front and centre for the Prime Minister and President Biden back when they met in February of last year. It was put forward in writing in the accord that was struck, called the “Roadmap for a Renewed U.S.-Canada Partnership”. The member opposite knows this. The member also knows that our government has endorsed projects that advance security, including the Line 3 replacement, LNG Canada and the TMX pipeline expansion. We are the government that has been moving these projects forward because we know they are critically important. We are also—

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Context: House Hansard - 67 - May/9/22

Ms. Yvonne Jones (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources and to the Minister of Northern Affairs, Lib.)

May/9/22 7:01:56 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague from Saanich—Gulf Islands for raising the issue. I want to say, from the outset, that I understand her question completely but I also know that she understands that there is a process. During that process that the government is taking with Baffinland, she knows that we should not be interfering politically. I want to be clear from the outset that our government supports a strong resource development sector in the north, one that is sustainable and that creates opportunities for indigenous and all northerners but respects the environment and respects the interests of the people who live there. I want to assure members, from the outset, that the review of this proposed development has been led by northerners from day one. It has followed the environmental review process that is outlined in the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement, and this process is guided by the Nunavut Planning and Project Assessment Act. Through this process, the Nunavut Impact Review Board, or NIRB, has been ensuring that Inuit and other indigenous partners have been consulted. NIRB has also worked very hard to balance public health during COVID-19 and other issues throughout the review while also ensuring that the Inuit voices have been heard. As part of the review process, members of potentially impacted communities in the Baffin region, some of whom I have talked to myself, have had the opportunity to make their views known. Public hearings that have been held by NIRB began in November 2019. The process has been ongoing since that time. While the pandemic delayed the process and some meetings had to be rescheduled, NIRB completed its hearings in January of this year. The board is now preparing its final recommendations, which will be presented to the minister and the department very shortly. Throughout that whole process, however, residents have been able to both learn about the proposed project and give their feedback and input into the project, and NIRB has gone to great lengths to ensure that Nunavummiut have had the chance to participate in or watch the proceedings. In addition to that, many federal officials have participated in every step of the review, including the final public hearings and a community round table, which was completed last fall. Once the NIRB report and the final report's recommendations are presented to the government, the responsible ministers will make the decisions that they are requested to make using due diligence and a very comprehensive decision framework. The member knows that the process is very clear, very defined and very transparent. We will not prejudge the outcome or the process and we look forward to receiving the board's report.

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Context: House Hansard - 67 - May/9/22

Ms. Yvonne Jones

May/9/22 7:06:29 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the member knows that this is an active mine. It is an ongoing mine. If she has particular information, that should be provided to the minister and to the government. If Inuit in that area have particular concerns and documentation of something that is being done outside of the process, then they should make us aware of that. What I do know at this stage is that it is an ongoing process with NIRB. They have made an application. They are following the regulations. Government is being responsible in the work that we do in allowing a fair, open and transparent process for that application. Until the recommendations are presented to the appropriate ministers, no decision will be made with regard to the future expansion of the mine.

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