I think Canadians, for some time, have been able to take for granted cheap affordable energy, but we have seen policies consistently from this Parliament that have done significant damage, in terms of being able to achieve the ability for us not only to get our product to international markets but, most importantly, to help Canadians.
You don't have to go much further than looking at the value of the Canadian dollar. The last time we saw hundred-dollar oil, we saw the Canadian dollar at par with the U.S. greenback. We price everything based on that currency, and it's for that reason that Canadians continuously and consistently find themselves falling behind.
Make no mistake. When the world is saying, “We need more energy”, the alternative being Russia, the alternative being Iran, the alternative being Saudi Arabia and the alternative being, to some extent, Venezuela, it really behooves all leaders in this country to recognize the importance of our energy.
While it's not perfect, we don't do enough to celebrate the fact that we have a pretty significant clean menu of energy options. The last thing we should be doing is allowing other countries to menace the security of the world by using oil and natural gas.