And so Justin Trudeau’s ‘Just Transition’ begins..The Liberal government is not calling it that, of course. When Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson introduced Bill C-50 this morning, he called it the ‘Canadian Sustainable Jobs Act.’.But don’t be fooled by the bait-and-switch messaging. The legislation Minister Wilkinson announced today that's already passed First Reading in the House of Commons, is part of the Liberal plan to replace Alberta’s hydrocarbon economy with some kind of green fantasy economy..A year ago, they called it the ‘Just Transition’ — oddly enough a phrase coined some time before by Alberta’s own NDP. It became notorious when ministerial briefing notes came to light in which some decidedly unjust outcomes were conceded:.“Will workers need to focus on reskilling or upskilling to adapt to a new labour market following the transition to a low carbon economy?” said the memo Key Messages On Just Transition. “Some green jobs will not require workers with green skills to perform their jobs, i.e. janitor or driver working for a solar energy company.”.Energy workers can earn six-figure salaries. Janitors, not so much. No surprise they decided to rebrand that..But this is the package..Or at least, it’s part of it. According to Natural Resources Canada, the minister had with this legislation — Bill C-50 — advanced just ‘one of the 10 key action areas’ outlined in the government’s Interim Sustainable Jobs Plan, announced earlier this year. This bill provides for an advisory body, a series of five-year plans and ‘a sustainable jobs secretariat to enable policy and program coherence across federal entities etc…’.Nine more ‘key action areas to go’ to go..Points to note: The legislation is national in scope, but Alberta (and Saskatchewan) being oil and gas-producing provinces, by definition bear the brunt. Not too many Liberal seats to lose out west, so that wasn't hard..The ministerial release also adds to the tissue of lies emanating from Ottawa with these two chestnuts:.Chestnut one, “Canada is extremely well-positioned to take advantage of the economic opportunities presented by the global race to net-zero.”.Folks, there is no global race to net-zero. This is a Justin Trudeau fascination: In China and India they’re building more coal-fired generating plants in a year than we’ve had in the history of Canada..Chestnut two, the Liberals claim they’ve been working on making Canada the ‘clean-energy and technology supplier of choice in a net-zero world.’.Sure. Try and buy a solar panel that’s made in Canada. There’s not much to choose from. Ditto wind-powered generators..In her victory speech, Premier Danielle Smith offered her government’s broad support to the federal government’s emission-reduction goals, but says ‘no’ to the latest Trudeau fatuity of capping emissions or achieving a net-zero electrical grid by 2035..In her ‘warning to Ottawa,’ she said, “As premier I cannot allow these contemplated federal policies to be inflicted upon Albertans. I simply can't and I won't.”.It was well said. Now may it be well done. Where's that Sovereignty Act?
And so Justin Trudeau’s ‘Just Transition’ begins..The Liberal government is not calling it that, of course. When Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson introduced Bill C-50 this morning, he called it the ‘Canadian Sustainable Jobs Act.’.But don’t be fooled by the bait-and-switch messaging. The legislation Minister Wilkinson announced today that's already passed First Reading in the House of Commons, is part of the Liberal plan to replace Alberta’s hydrocarbon economy with some kind of green fantasy economy..A year ago, they called it the ‘Just Transition’ — oddly enough a phrase coined some time before by Alberta’s own NDP. It became notorious when ministerial briefing notes came to light in which some decidedly unjust outcomes were conceded:.“Will workers need to focus on reskilling or upskilling to adapt to a new labour market following the transition to a low carbon economy?” said the memo Key Messages On Just Transition. “Some green jobs will not require workers with green skills to perform their jobs, i.e. janitor or driver working for a solar energy company.”.Energy workers can earn six-figure salaries. Janitors, not so much. No surprise they decided to rebrand that..But this is the package..Or at least, it’s part of it. According to Natural Resources Canada, the minister had with this legislation — Bill C-50 — advanced just ‘one of the 10 key action areas’ outlined in the government’s Interim Sustainable Jobs Plan, announced earlier this year. This bill provides for an advisory body, a series of five-year plans and ‘a sustainable jobs secretariat to enable policy and program coherence across federal entities etc…’.Nine more ‘key action areas to go’ to go..Points to note: The legislation is national in scope, but Alberta (and Saskatchewan) being oil and gas-producing provinces, by definition bear the brunt. Not too many Liberal seats to lose out west, so that wasn't hard..The ministerial release also adds to the tissue of lies emanating from Ottawa with these two chestnuts:.Chestnut one, “Canada is extremely well-positioned to take advantage of the economic opportunities presented by the global race to net-zero.”.Folks, there is no global race to net-zero. This is a Justin Trudeau fascination: In China and India they’re building more coal-fired generating plants in a year than we’ve had in the history of Canada..Chestnut two, the Liberals claim they’ve been working on making Canada the ‘clean-energy and technology supplier of choice in a net-zero world.’.Sure. Try and buy a solar panel that’s made in Canada. There’s not much to choose from. Ditto wind-powered generators..In her victory speech, Premier Danielle Smith offered her government’s broad support to the federal government’s emission-reduction goals, but says ‘no’ to the latest Trudeau fatuity of capping emissions or achieving a net-zero electrical grid by 2035..In her ‘warning to Ottawa,’ she said, “As premier I cannot allow these contemplated federal policies to be inflicted upon Albertans. I simply can't and I won't.”.It was well said. Now may it be well done. Where's that Sovereignty Act?