Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the great member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley.
Today, the House of Commons will debate and vote on a Conservative motion calling for a new oil pipeline to the Pacific coast, overriding the tanker ban on shipping bitumen to Asia.
Just eight months ago, the Prime Minister told Canadians that his government would build things previously thought impossible at speeds we have not seen in generations, and that he would build Canada into an energy superpower. When announcing his memorandum of understanding with Alberta, he said, “At the core of the agreement, of course, is a priority to have a pipeline to Asia. That is going to make Canada stronger, more independent, more resilient, more sustainable”. The language in today's motion comes directly from the Prime Minister's own MOU with Alberta. It states:
That the House:
(a) take note of the Memorandum of Understanding between Canada and Alberta of November 27, 2025; and
(b) support the construction of one or more pipelines enabling the export of at least one million barrels a day of low-emission Alberta bitumen from a strategic deepwater port on the British Columbia coast to reach Asian markets, including through an appropriate adjustment to the Oil Tanker Moratorium Act, while respecting the duty to consult Indigenous peoples.
Canadians cannot afford any more delays. A pipeline to the Pacific coast, shipping a million barrels of oil a day to Asia at world prices, would mean stronger take-home pay for Canadians and a resilient, self-reliant economy. A pipeline is what Canada needs now, not more broken Liberal promises and not more bait-and-switch tactics from the government, yet the government continues to stall and stand in the way of this pipeline.
The government promised one thing to Alberta and another thing to British Columbia. Even its own Liberal caucus is divided. Some Liberal MPs insist that a pipeline must have B.C.'s consent and, specifically, that it must have the consent of the Premier of British Columbia. They say that without it, there will be no pipeline.
The constitutional reality is that British Columbia does not have a veto over an interprovincial pipeline. Only the federal government has that authority. That is a good thing, because the B.C. NDP premier has been clear that he is against a pipeline, saying, “it will never be built”.
Conservatives brought forward this motion today because the Prime Minister's MOU does not promise that a pipeline will be built. Instead, it only commits that seven months from now, a proposal will be referred to a federal office for two more years of study, while the B.C. premier will still effectively have a veto on this pipeline.
Why, then, do the Liberals refuse to assert federal jurisdiction, choosing instead to allow political obstruction to continue while Canadians struggle to pay their bills? Energy workers deserve better. Families deserve better. Canada deserves better. The Liberals need to do just one thing for a pipeline to happen: Get out of the way. That means repealing the industrial carbon tax, granting a permit for a pipeline and unblocking the billions of dollars in private sector energy investment that is ready to build.
For an entire decade, the government has treated Canada's energy workers and energy-producing regions not as a national strength, but as a problem to be solved. It has blocked pipelines, cancelled projects, imposed punishing regulations and created a climate of uncertainty that has driven investment out of this country at record speed.
It is no wonder that Canadians no longer trust the Liberals' promises and announcements, which so rarely result in anything. For 10 years, their policies have not just harmed the energy sector; they have hurt everyday Canadians who rely on affordable fuel, good jobs and a strong economy to support their families. Across the country, people are working harder, paying more and getting less. Groceries, housing and basic essentials keep rising in price, while paycheques stretch thinner and thinner. Monthly food bank visits keep smashing records, and people who once donated to their community food banks are now lining up for help for their families.
When investment flees Canada, workers pay the price. When pipelines are blocked, paycheques shrink. When energy costs rise, the price of groceries, heating and housing rises with them. Good energy jobs that once sustained entire communities are leaving our country, and when that investment leaves, opportunity leaves with it.
For years now, business after business has concluded that Canada is no longer a place where major projects can get approved, built or completed. Even the Prime Minister has admitted that Liberal laws make it impossible to get anything built. From Bill C-69, the “no new pipelines” law, and Bill C-48, the west coast shipping ban, to the oil and gas emissions cap and the punitive industrial carbon tax, these Liberal policies have sent thousands of Canadian jobs straight to the United States.
Canada should be a country of big dreams and big projects. We should be attracting investment, not driving it away, but under the Liberal anti-investment agenda, over $500 billion in private sector investment has vanished. That is not an abstract number. That means thousands of paycheques that never went out, mortgages that became unaffordable and careers that were cut short. Instead of supporting workers and the industries that sustain them, the Liberals have spent a decade blocking major infrastructure, stalling resource projects and creating uncertainty that chases investment to other countries.
Instead of supporting Canada's world-class energy industry, the Liberals have undermined it at every turn. Just this year alone, from May to September, nearly $54 billion of investment left Canada. This is in addition to more than $500 billion lost under Liberal governments. That is money that could have gone to jobs, wages and opportunities for Canadian families.
The energy sector is a major employer, with nearly a million workers, and it contributes to $1 billion in revenue for the government. This is money that should have been building pipelines, supporting workers, strengthening communities and lowering costs for Canadians, not building prosperity in other countries and lining the pockets of dictators around the world.
Liberal policies and energy production caps are projected to reduce oil and gas production by nearly 5%, cut GDP by $20 billion annually and eliminate over 54,000 full-time jobs by 2032, yet the Liberals are still committed to the same anti-growth policies that drove investment away.
Today, the House of Commons has an opportunity to turn things around and give our country a brighter future. Members will vote on our Conservative motion to build a new pipeline to the Pacific coast and ship a million barrels a day to Asia at world prices, not the discount prices we see today. This motion today is about putting more money in the pockets of Canadian workers and raising paycheques across the country. This pipeline from Alberta to the Pacific coast would mean stronger take-home pay, lower long-term energy costs, billions of dollars of private investment and a more self-reliant, secure Canadian economy.
The path forward is straightforward. If the Liberals truly want to build this pipeline, they must do just one thing: Get out of the way. Canada does not need more announcements or studies; Canada needs action, Canada needs jobs and Canada needs lower costs for struggling families. Conservatives will fight for stronger paycheques. We will fight to make energy, food and housing affordable and we will fight to rebuild a self-reliant, secure, sovereign Canadian economy.
It is time to build that pipeline, it is time to restore Canada's economic strength and it is time to bring home Canadian prosperity.
