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Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau told the crowd in Calgary on Tuesday that he and the Liberal government needed to do more to highlight the importance of the Canadian energy sector in other parts of the country.
Morneau, who spoke at the Chamber of Commerce less than a week after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau – and whose visit, like that of Trudeau, was greeted by a crowd of protesters Oilers angry at the significant discount currently being applied on Alberta crude – said it had Business leaders said the Canadian government was not supporting the "industry" out loud, as it should be.
"From my point of view, the decision to acquire Trans Mountain, the expansion, was clearly intended to substitute actions for words," said Morneau. "But I made a commitment last night, and again this morning, to try to get this message across our country. . . We need to think about how we can provide more overt support so that the people here will agree that we represent them well. "
In the words of the Prime Minister in his speech last Thursday, Mr. Morneau expressed deep concern about the difference in the price of Canadian crude – which he says is causing "acute anxiety" in Calgary and Canada. costs the Canadian economy about $ 80 million a day.
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Also like Trudeau, Morneau did not propose a new solution to deal with the problem, only stating that the federal government is working hard for Trans Mountain to be built and listens to the industry to find other ways d & # 39; help.
"If there had been an easy answer, we would have taken it," said Morneau. "But we do not see an easy answer."
Mark Scholz – President of the Canadian Association of Oil Well Drilling Contractors (CAODC) – said Morneau acknowledged that the federal government could give more support to the industry, which was an "incredible step forward" ".
"This industry has for some time felt that the government has done no service, so to speak, in terms of the language it uses to describe our industry," Scholz said.
Mr. Scholz stated that the government's tendency to refer to the "Alberta" oil and gas sector rather than the "Canadian" oil and gas sector, or that it has not vocally defended the regulatory system of the country is a critical point for the industry.
"The tone at the top counts," said Scholz. "The little things, the signals and the language chosen by our political leaders are of great importance."
Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau participates in a question-and-answer session with Elizabeth Cannon, President of the University of Calgary.
However, Calgary Chamber of Commerce spokesman Mark Cooper said that while all the federal government is doing to promote the energy sector in other parts of Canada is welcome, now is the time to find more concrete solutions.
"We need urgent action," Cooper said. "I think Ottawa's business community wants to better recognize that these market access issues and the cold weather of the investments we face are largely due to its policies and the ever-changing regulatory agenda."
Both the municipal and provincial governments spoke on Tuesday of the sudden announcement of the closure of a General Motors badembly plant in Oshawa, Ontario, illustrating the perceived gap between the Trudeau government and what is happening. on the ground in Alberta. .
"We are losing two and a half months of genetically modified plants in Alberta since the beginning of the economic downturn," said Mayor Naheed Nenshi, referring to job losses in the oil sector. "There was an emergency meeting of Parliament last night about these 2,000 jobs (in Oshawa)."
"The actions they have taken so far (from the federal government) indicate that they are deaf to the importance of Canada's energy sector to Canada and its impact," said Provincial Minister of Economic Development Deron Bilous. "We saw the Prime Minister react very quickly to the news in Oshawa. . . We would like the federal government to move so quickly for Alberta's energy sector. "
However, Tristan Goodman, President of the Canadian Association of Explorers and Producers, said that while he felt the federal government should do more to address the differential crisis, he was willing to give Morneau a credit. his counterparts.
"The fact is we have a prime minister who has been to Alberta 20 times since being elected. And he has invested several billion dollars in the question (by buying a pipeline), "said Goodman. "It would be a mistake to say that the federal government has done nothing."
– With records of Chris Varcoe and Meghan Potkins
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