Mr. Speaker, as an Albertan it has been incredibly difficult to hear the stories of my friends and neighbours who have been affected by the economic downturn in our province.
Last week I held round tables throughout my Foothills constituency as part of the Alberta jobs task force, and I heard countless stories of job losses, mental health concerns, faltering businesses, and families struggling to make ends meet.
However, the resurrection of Keystone XL has brought renewed hope to thousands of unemployed energy workers in Alberta. The U.S. president-elect supports Keystone XL and I hope our Prime Minister will also make this a top priority and work with the proponents of this pipeline to get it built. Keystone XL would create critical jobs for Canadian workers and offer a new route to get our energy resources to market. We cannot afford to let this opportunity pass us by.
Steelworkers in Saskatchewan and Ontario, welders in Nova Scotia, and engineers in Alberta are counting on the government to show leadership, abandon a job-killing carbon tax, and support a job-creating pipeline.
Get Keystone XL approved.