Paris Agreement  Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. I am proud to rise today to speak to the motion in support of the government's ratification of the Paris agreement. This agreement represents the cumulative efforts of 190 countries, civil society partners, private sector companies, and indigenous peoples.

Paris Agreement  Mr. Speaker, the hon. member says that the previous government had a credible climate plan. I spent the last 20 years as an executive in the clean tech industry. I have to tell members that there is nobody in the clean tech or clean energy sectors who would agree with that characterization.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, we are very proud of the work that many of the provinces in Canada have done to address greenhouse gases, Quebec being one. Eighty-five per cent of Canadians already live in jurisdictions that have put a price on carbon. We are taking action, through the work we did today, with respect to showing leadership on carbon pricing.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, today is a very proud day for me, as the father of two teenage daughters. We have taken action in significant ways, including the actions today, to address climate change. We started with significant investments in budget 2016. We worked with the United States on reducing methane emissions.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, we are working very actively with the provincial and territorial governments to implement the commitments that were made in the Vancouver Declaration agreed to by all premiers, which include the price on carbon. We understand very much that unique circumstances exist in some of the provinces and territories, and we are working to find solutions to meet their individual needs.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, we know that in order to build a strong economy we have to be serious about protecting the environment, and a price on carbon is part of that. It will help us to reduce our emissions, foster innovation, and give businesses the certainty that they need to plan. We are working actively with all of the provinces as we approach the development of the pan-Canadian framework.

Natural Resources  Mr. Speaker, one of the core responsibilities of any government is to help get our natural resources to market, but in a sustainable fashion. The only way we can do that is to restore public trust in the way we evaluate major projects. This government introduced the interim principles as a first step to addressing some of the concerns that exist.

Natural Resources  Mr. Speaker, for 10 years, under the previous administration, not one kilometre of pipeline was built to tidewater. The reason was that it had undermined the integrity of the environmental assessment process and the National Energy Board process. We intend to re-establish the confidence of Canadians in these processes to ensure that we can get our resources to market in a sustainable way.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for her question. We welcome the joint UNESCO World Heritage Centre and International Union for Conservation of Nature mission on Wood Buffalo National Park, which will take place between September 26 and October 4 this year. Reactive monitoring missions are carried out around the world as an act of due diligence to assess potential threats to the outstanding universal value of world heritage sites.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, we know that in order to build a strong economy, we have to be serious about protecting the environment, something that the previous government did not understand, and a price on carbon is an essential part of that. It will help us to reduce our emissions, foster innovation, and give business the stability they need to invest, grow, and plan.

Indigenous Affairs  Mr. Speaker, I would note for the hon. member that at the federal level, the processes related to Site C are overseen by the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency and the Minister of Environment and Climate Change. In the fall of 2014, the former government approved this project, subject to a number of legally binding conditions.

Indigenous Affairs  Mr. Speaker, in the fall of 2014, the former government approved the project and set a number of legally binding conditions with which the proponent must comply. The project is now in the construction phase. As we outlined in the interim principles, project reviews are continuing within the current legislative framework and in accordance with treaty provisions.

Indigenous Affairs  Mr. Speaker, as we stated in the announcement of the interim principles and the principles on January 27, and with the recent establishment of the panel that was reviewing EA processes, we are working to modernize and significantly improve how environmental assessments are conducted and major project decisions are made.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, as I said before, Canadians know that addressing climate change will actually improve the Canadian economy and drive clean growth. I would say that 80% of Canadians actually live in jurisdictions that have moved on carbon pricing, including the Government of Alberta, the Government of B.C., the Government of Ontario, and the Government of Quebec.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, this government is actively focused on growing the economy in an environmentally sustainable way. Counter to the previous 10 years, where the environment was almost ignored, we are focused on ensuring that we grow the economy and manage the environment. We are also working very much on a federal, provincial, and territorial basis to ensure that we work collaboratively with other partners in the federation to come to a conclusion that will be a good conclusion for Canada and a good conclusion for the world.