It’s finally 2019, and the next federal election is right around the corner. The election will be fought over a number of important issues, but I think Canada’s energy sector will be front and center.
The issue of pipelines has dominated debate in our country for years now. Unfortunately, I think that far too many Canadians simply have no idea how much they benefit from our oil and gas sector. It is a massive revenue source for the government, and many key services like healthcare and the military are funded by oil and gas. If you have a pension fund, it is likely heavily invested in the sector. And the jobs and prosperity that the industry creates have benefits from coast to coast to coast.
Many of you have likely heard the ethical oil argument – but we need Canadians across the country to understand it. When we import oil, it doesn’t come from environmentally responsible oil industries. As our Conservative leader Andrew Scheer recently said – the real dirty oil is from Saudi Arabia.
If we were to completely shut down Canadian energy production (as some extremists seem to want, and as the Prime Minister has said he wants to do) we would still need oil and gas. So-called green energy sources have nowhere near the capacity or technological viability to heat millions of home and fuel transportation in a country as vast as ours. So we would be using the same amount of oil and gas, but importing it from countries with environmental regulations that simply don’t compare to Canada’s.
I know that many of you in our riding already know how beneficial our oil and gas industry is. The recent rally for Canadian resources in Brooks had a massive turnout, and I want to thank everyone who took time out of their day to show their support. But we need more Canadians to know that Canada is responsible for only 1.6% of global emissions and that Canada is a major carbon sink. We need Canadians to know that our oil and gas industry has made enormous strides in producing energy more sustainably.
And we need Canadians to know that the Liberal government’s plan for our energy sector simply makes no sense.
I look forward to debating this issue throughout 2019.
I can be reached in Ottawa at martin.shields@parl.gc.ca. My Brooks office can be reached at 403-793-6775 or martin.shields.c1@parl.gc.ca, and my Strathmore office at 403-361-2980 or martin.shields.c1B@parl.gc.ca. Please don’t hesitate to contact me about any federal issue.
