Mr. Speaker, today is the day Governor Whitmer has ordered Enbridge Line 5 to be shut down. Yesterday, chambers of commerce in Canada and the U.S., our government, trade unions and affected states filed briefs of support in the court case to show support for keeping the line open.
Independent studies show that at least 33,000 jobs will be impacted in both countries if Line 5 is shut down, 23,000 of those in my riding of Sarnia—Lambton, and $21 billion in economic damage would result.
For all the Liberal government's many words to insist it will do everything diplomatically, legally and politically to keep Line 5 open, I am concerned it waited until the last possible moment to file a brief of support.
I call on the Prime Minister to elevate the importance of Line 5 in his discussions with President Biden. Hopefully, a mediated solution will be accepted to support the project that will put the pipeline below the bedrock encased in a tunnel so we can protect the many people across the states and provinces who are worried about their jobs.