Paul Lefebvre

[Natural Resources, October 8th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, the member was in the last Parliament with us when we did everything to get TMX built, and it is being built right now. He should know this, and I am sure he does. It is such an important file. I know that behind closed doors, from talking to my colleagues in the Conservative Party, they are happy about that. Albertans are also happy that we are proceeding with TMX, and the thousands of jobs that are being created right now because of it.

I want to reiterate that our government believes in the success of the petroleum sector and that it is critical to the successful restart and recovery of the economy. That is why we put in place the measures over the past several months that I have just referred to: because we understand the importance of supporting a sector that is a source of well-paying jobs for Canadians across the country.

We understand that by supporting a strong economic recovery, particularly in the oil and gas sector, Canadian businesses such as Suncor will continue to attract investment and good projects that will support environmental and social priorities and create jobs for Canadians now and into the future.

[Natural Resources, October 8th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, before I go into my script, maybe the member should know what is going on in the world.

In the United States, 107,000 workers have been laid off in the oil and gas sector. BP has laid off 10,000 workers around the world. Shell has laid off 9,000 workers around the world. The member wants to tell us that because of Canadian policies, this is going on around the world. He could not be further from the truth, obviously.

Our government is working hard to help the oil and gas sector, and his question is a very important one. We know that in Canada's resource sector, workers and suppliers have been hard hit by the fallout of COVID-19. Nowhere has this been more pronounced than in the petroleum sector, where producers have faced the added challenge of record-low prices caused by the dual impact of a price war and a collapse in demand, something obviously ignored by the member, either willfully or because he is not sure what is going on in his backyard.

The success of Canada's petroleum sector is critical to the successful restart and recovery of the economy. That is why our government is working hard to support the petroleum sector through these difficult times.

As a government, we believe in the future of this sector. I will say it again: We believe in the future of this sector. This includes its role in driving investments in clean technology and new opportunities in areas such as hydrogen and carbon capture, use and storage. That is why we have put in place measures over the past several months that are key to ensuring that Canada emerges with a stronger, more innovative economy in a cleaner energy future.

We started with the Canada emergency wage subsidy, which supported maintaining jobs in all sectors across Canada. For the oil and gas sector, the wage subsidy meant sustaining 80,000 jobs at the height of the crisis across Canada, with 60,000 jobs in Alberta alone.

We went further, with almost $2.5 billion for the energy sector, providing $1.7 million to clean up orphan and inactive oil and gas wells. This is expected to create thousands of jobs, including an estimated 5,200 in Alberta alone, and provide lasting environmental benefits. I must say that the Alberta government and Alberta's Minister of Energy were ecstatic when we partnered to do this with the Province of Alberta.

There is up to $750 million in repayable contributions, through our new emissions reduction fund, to lower greenhouse gas emissions in Canada's oil and gas sector, with a focus on methane. The fund includes $75 million, some of which will be non-repayable, to help the offshore industry in Newfoundland and Labrador create and maintain jobs through emission reduction efforts, and expanded eligibility to help Canadian businesses get the financing they need during this period of uncertainty. This support is available to medium-sized businesses with larger financing needs, beginning with companies in Canada's energy sector, to help them maintain operations and keep their employees on the job.

More recently, our government announced $320 million in funding to support workers in Newfoundland and Labrador offshore. This will stimulate and maintain employment and economic activity in the province and will ensure that it can support middle-class families and communities.

Our government will continue to pursue all avenues to ensure that Canada's energy sector continues to be a key source of the jobs that support a strong economy. We are supporting workers. We are supporting families. We are supporting our oil and gas sector. We are supporting Albertans.

[Northern Ontario, October 7th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, small and medium-sized businesses in northern Ontario remain hard hit by COVID-19. FedNor's regional relief and recovery fund, RRRF, has been a lifeline, protecting more than 3,300 jobs in northern Ontario alone.

On October 2, an extra $22.3 million was announced for FedNor, including $6 million for Community Futures development corporations. This is in addition to the $43.8 million that were already announced this spring.

I want to thank the minister for all her help in supporting local jobs in northern Ontario. Our message to local businesses is clear: We are here for them and we will get through this together. We are working with them to support good, local jobs and to help our economy come back stronger.

These businesses are the backbone of our economy and an important source of local jobs. We are providing small and medium-sized businesses with the means and the tools they need to recover and prosper.

[Natural Resources, October 2nd, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, certainly, small modular reactors have a wide range of potential applications, are emissions free and could be an option for communities that choose to use them. In 2018, a steering committee including provinces, territories and power utilities submitted the SMR road map. To date, we have seen a clear interest and initial action taken to advance this technology in a safe and responsible way.

The safety of Canadians and protection of our environment remain top priorities for both our government and our industry regulator, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. We have more to say about this, and we are very excited about the possibilities that the SMR sector is presenting to Canadians.

[Natural Resources, September 28th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, we are committed to the successful and sustainable co-management of our offshore under the Atlantic accord and have taken action to support the people and economy of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Our government has announced a $320-million transfer to the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to support jobs and to ensure a sustainable, long-term, low-emitting future for our offshore. This agreement will allow the province to invest in activities to create jobs, such as safety improvements, maintenance and upgrades of existing facilities, and research and development. We believe in our workers, and we will always have their backs.

[Natural Resources, September 28th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, let me quote from the Speech from the Throne. It was mentioned, “The Government will: Support manufacturing, natural resource, and energy sectors” and that “Canada cannot reach net zero without the know-how of the energy sector...including people in places like British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador.”

We have supported our energy sector throughout this pandemic. We will continue to support it and rely on our workers as we build back better.

[Emergency Debate, February 25th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, the debate today is with respect to the Teck decision. However, I will take this opportunity to highlight the words of Teck president, Don Lindsay, when he said:

Resource development has been at the heart of the Canadian economy for generations. Resource sectors including the Alberta oil sands create jobs; build roads, schools and hospitals; and contribute to a better standard of living for all Canadians. At the same time, there is an urgent need to reduce global carbon emissions and support action on climate change. As a proudly Canadian company for over 100 years, we know these two priorities do not have to be in conflict.

That is what we are aiming for. We believe what the industry is saying, the signal that it sent, and we are working towards that goal.

[Emergency Debate, February 25th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, since 2015 we have been working on the transition to a low-carbon economy. We have invested over $60 billion over the last five years and we are committed, down the road, to ensure that those investments are made, because we understand. At the same time, when we transition, we need to make sure that the jobs are there, which is what the anxiety is all about out west and across Canada when people do not have jobs or are afraid to lose their jobs.

Basically, we are making sure that we are making the proper investments in clean tech when it comes to transition. At the end of the day, we know that the oil and gas sectors will still be required around the world for decades to come, so we need to balance out the environment and the economy.

NDP members are saying not to do anything on the economy, and to let it drop. What we hear from the Conservatives is that it is all about the economy, and to forget about the environment. However, we know that we need to do both, which is what Don Lindsay from Teck Resources told us. We need to do both, and Canada has the ability to do both.

We need to make this a non-partisan issue. We are not there yet, but we need to work together to get there.

[Emergency Debate, February 25th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I can tell my hon. colleague that our government has been seized since 2015 with the issues going on in the oil patch and in the oil sands sector.

That is why we supported Line 3, which is actually completed on the Canadian side, as well as Keystone XL. I met with some governors and senators in the U.S. last year, and we talked about Keystone XL and the importance of getting that project moving forward. Let us not forget TMX. Last year I stood up in this House many times to answer questions from Conservatives who did not believe we were ever going to get it built and that we did not want to get it built. Now, there is pipe in the ground in Edmonton, and going all the way through. There are thousands of jobs being created.

We understand the anxiety in Alberta with respect to jobs. That is why we are working hard, with Alberta and all the industry partners, to move forward in a constructive, sustainable way for the industry. That is what we are going to continue to do.

[Emergency Debate, February 25th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, I am happy to rise today on this important debate. Before I start, I would like to advise I will be sharing my time with the member for Niagara Centre.

I know that our government welcomes this opportunity to to hear from all parties in the House.

In many ways, Teck Resources' decision to abandon the Frontier project based on its own economic and operational interests has highlighted two of the biggest challenges of our time. The first is to ensure that our natural resources, including our oil reserves, continue to provide Canadians with jobs and opportunities. The second is to honour our commitments, both at home and abroad, to combat climate change.

Our government has been dealing with these two challenges since taking office. Canada is the fourth-largest oil producer in the world. Our oil industry continues to be a source of jobs and prosperity for the entire country. We also know that in this century of clean growth, economic prosperity and environmental protection must go hand in hand.

We have therefore taken a balanced approach. This approach uses revenue from our oil resources to invest in clean energy and the technologies of tomorrow. We know that, in the medium term, the world will not give up oil as an energy source. In fact, we expect demand for oil to increase in the coming decades.

Our goal is to make sure Canada produces the cleanest petroleum in the world, and we have already taken huge strides. Our petroleum producers have cut the intensity of their emissions by 28% since 2000. Many companies have committed to achieving net-zero emissions, including Canadian Natural Resources Limited, MEG Energy and Shell.

This indicates that major energy companies know the importance of establishing Canada's brand as the cleanest supplier of resources anywhere. We see the same thing happening with natural gas, where LNG plants are making greater use of electricity. One project, LNG Canada, will have “best in class” emissions. Other smaller projects will be even cleaner, with emissions as much as 90% below the global average.

Canadian innovators are also leading the way on removing carbon from the atmosphere and storing it safely. In fact, four of the largest-scale demonstration projects in carbon capture, use and storage are in Canada.

We have also put a price on pollution, we are phasing out coal by 2030, we are focused on helping remote communities move off diesel and we are making generational investments in clean energy, clean technologies and green infrastructure. That infrastructure includes a nationwide network of charging stations for electric vehicles and incentives for people to buy these vehicles.

Canada already generates more than 80% of its electricity with no emissions, and our goal is to get to 90% by the end of this decade. Those efforts are complemented by significant new investments in smart grids right across the country.

Two other areas where we see great potential are hydrogen and small modular reactors. We are in the process of developing a hydrogen strategy to grow production for use in transportation, mining and industry. Small modular reactors, as the name implies, are smaller in size and output than traditional nuclear facilities. Some can be transported on the back of a truck, making them ideal for remote areas. Because they are modular, they can easily be added to one another to meet changing demand. Best of all, they produce absolutely no pollution, making them a key tool in the transition to a net-zero economy.

All of these efforts, and more, are aimed at achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, making Canada one of some 77 countries to set that ambitious goal.

We are also active on the global stage through the G7 and G20 as well as through Clean Energy Ministerial and Mission Innovation, which Canada was proud to host last year. As part of Mission Innovation, Canada has pledged to double its investments in clean energy research and development from $387 million to $775 million this year alone.

We are also involved in the International Energy Agency, COP and the International Energy Forum. We are also engaging with international partners to position Canada as a player in establishing secure and sustainable global supply chains for the minerals that are powering many clean energy technologies, minerals that are in growing demand around the world. Recently, for example, we finalized a joint action plan to collaborate with the United States on critical minerals.

All of these actions are aimed at ensuring that we balance resource development with our environmental commitments. In its announcement withdrawing its application for Frontier, Teck Resources made it clear that it understands the need for that balance. As the president and chief executive officer of Teck Resources, Don Lindsay, said:

There is an urgent need to reduce global carbon emissions and support action on climate change....We support strong actions to enable the transition to a low carbon future. We are also strong supporters of Canada’s action on carbon pricing and other climate policies such as legislated caps for oil sands emissions.

We agree with Mr. Lindsay and other leading industrial groups that all levels of government must come together now to take climate action that will enable us to achieve net zero by 2050. It is time to make this objective a reality. In the days and weeks to come, our government will continue to work with our provincial and territorial partners, indigenous communities and all those who wish to join this discussion with open minds and open hearts.

In doing so, we will be guided by the principles that Canadians expect of us. We will be responsible for reducing greenhouse gas emissions to meet and exceed our Paris targets as we move towards net-zero emissions by 2050. We will enhance our competitiveness and the health of the economy to create jobs. We will collaborate by strengthening partnerships with the provinces and territories, indigenous peoples, municipalities and youth. We will be inclusive, by ensuring fairness and by preparing the workforce of tomorrow. We will ensure that our decisions yield affordable results for industry, families and the middle class.

Those are the values that have guided our government since 2015. They are the values and principles that will guide our efforts to develop a real climate action plan. Canadians ask no more than this. They deserve no less.