Letter to the Editor – Standing up for Alberta’s Natural Resources

April 19, 2023 – Ottawa, ON
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Recently Liberal Justice Minister David Lametti talked about the federal government taking
control over natural resources in three Western provinces.
Speaking to the Association of First Nations regarding the Natural Resources Transfer Act,
Minister Lametti stated “I obviously can’t pronounce on that right now but I do commit to looking
at that. It won’t be uncontroversial, is the only thing I would say, with a bit of a smile.”
As an MP for a northern Alberta riding where oil and gas are a significant part of our livelihoods
and economy, I will never accept any attempt by the Trudeau government to take control of our
constitutionally-protected resource rights.
The Minister has since walked back his comments; however, the Liberals have repeatedly
shown they cannot be trusted with our natural resources. Canadian oil and gas companies have
dealt with unprecedented gatekeeping, challenges and uncertainty since Trudeau’s election and
the passage of job-killing legislation like Bills C-48 and C-69, the “No-More-Pipelines Act.
Imagine how much worse it would be if the Trudeau Liberals were to take direct control over
resource development? Further, the silence from the federal and provincial NDP is deafening.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has made the case for First Nations to share in the
revenue generated by resource development on their lands, pointing to the federal
government’s record of meddling in provincial and Indigenous rights: “For hundreds of years,
First Nations people have suffered under a broken system that gives the power over their lives
to a faraway government in Ottawa that decides for them.”
I will always stand up for Alberta and our resources. We have the energy the world wants and
needs. A Conservative government will repeal Bills C-48 & C-69 and allow private sector
proponents with Indigenous partners to do what they do best – develop our natural resources
without the need for more taxpayer dollars and higher taxes.
Arnold Viersen, MP
Peace River – Westlock