AARON GUNN: Four tankers filled to the brim with American oil depart Alaska EVERY DAY heading along the very waters Canada’s own tankers will soon be banned

The assault on Canada’s Energy Industry just keeps getting worse. 

This time it’s Bill C-48, the latest masterstroke from the Trudeau government, which effectively kills any new pipelines by banning tanker traffic off BC’s North coast. 

I honestly don’t know where to begin – but let’s start with the colossal hypocrisy.

Why is it that 283 million tons of foreign oil are allowed to transit Canada’s East coast, including down the St. Lawrence river in Quebec, and yet on BC’s North Coast, it will soon be banned? 

And it’s not just hypocritical. It’s also just plain stupid. 

There is no scientific evidence whatsoever to suggest tanker traffic in Northern B.C. presents a greater risk to the environment than anywhere else – in fact the exact opposite is true. 

And here’s the kicker. There already are tankers off BC’s coast.

Four tankers, each filled to the brim with American oil, depart Alaska EVERY DAY heading South alongside the very waters where Canada’s own tankers will soon be banned. 

It just doesn’t make any sense. 

Oil facility on Khark Island, on the shore of the Persian Gulf

But most importantly, bill C-48 will prevent Canadian oil from reaching the international markets it needs where it would otherwise receive a fair price. 

Instead that global demand will be filled by repressive, environmentally destructive regimes like Venezuela and Iran, while Canada sits on its hands; exporting our jobs overseas while throwing away billions. 

The truth is over the past five years Canada’s energy industry has been decimated, shedding over 50,000 jobs thanks, in part, to a series of self-inflicted disasters.  

First it was axing Northern Gateway ... then Bill C-69 ... and now this.

Enough is enough. 

It’s time to support Canada’s energy industry, and get Canadians working again.

Aaron Gunn

Taxpayer Advocate