Mr. Speaker, the energy sector is essential to Canada's prosperity. We know that a pipeline is a safe and effective way to transport key resources from one coast to another. The federal government is being frank and honest with Canadians about the challenges posed by the the 21st-century economy. This is a process that brings together effective environmental assessments and a long-term vision for our prosperity.
This vision for the energy sector requires that the provinces and territories and aboriginal communities work together. Gone are the days of divisiveness over energy and pipelines.
After a decade during which the former government put ideology ahead of job creation, we will make decisions based on job creation, prosperity, and a sustainable future. Today's leadership will help create economic opportunities.
Our world has been through a significant transformation. With the advent of information technology, access to information is becoming the norm. Canadians demand transparency in how the government is run. Canadians demand a government that is committed to addressing the problems that have a significant impact on our daily lives.
We will keep our promise to include communities, environmental agencies, and aboriginal peoples in a dialogue addressing our needs for a sustainable, secure economy.
This is about leaving a legacy to future generations. This is about a commitment to our country and future generations, who will not make the distinction between innovation and natural resource conservation. They will look at our decisions as the first critical steps to a greener, more prosperous future where Canadian businesses are leaders in designing and producing green technologies used the world over.
That future was completely sidelined by the Conservatives over the past decade. They did not tap into the innovation and entrepreneurial spirit in the green technology and natural resource extraction sectors. How many potential jobs were sacrificed for the sake of their ideology?
As far as our NDP colleagues are concerned, the vision they are offering our constituents depends on the language they are using in their speeches. The hon. member for Outremont supported energy east in Alberta, but last year when he was in Quebec, he said he opposed the project. What changed? Was it the language, the region, or his policy? His personal politics certainly changed.
The energy sector is very important to Canada's future prosperity. We cannot sacrifice our country's future on the altar of ideology and political games. Canadians expect us to make decisions based on fact and to listen to them. If their perspectives are excluded from studies of major projects that will have an impact on us all, they will know.
That is where we are coming from. That is why we believe that pipeline proponents are responsible for showing that they have considered all of the risks their projects entail. Only once they have done that will they be allowed to go ahead with their projects. It is easy to see that our country has been hit hard by falling oil prices, tough investment decisions, and even tougher decisions to lay workers off.
Behind the statistics and the postponed projects are individuals, people all over the country. People in communities, not just in western Canada but across the country, are coping with difficult economic conditions and facing an uncertain future.
Quebec lost a lot of jobs during the first six months of 2015, and that had an impact on the financial, service, and retail sectors. These struggles are real, and there is no magic solution. However, there are a lot of positive steps we can take.
That is why our government is focusing on support for the rapid development of green technology and investments in green infrastructure in order to ease the burden on those who have been affected by job losses in the energy sector. That is why we have put forward a process to restore people's trust when it comes to the principles that will guide decision making on major resource-based projects that are already being assessed. That is why we are modernizing the National Energy Board. Restoring trust in the regulatory system will increase general support for large-scale energy projects. The government believes that Canadians should be optimistic about the long-term future of the energy sector.
The energy sector is becoming increasingly important in Canada and Quebec, but this prosperity means that we need an effective environmental management regime for the future. At the same time, investments in green infrastructure are key to our collective prosperity. We need to ensure that Canada is a leader in the necessary process of transitioning our economy to a green economy. Future generations need us to do so. We cannot and we must not disappoint them.