LAKELAND – Lakeland MP Shannon Stubbs has returned to her former post as the critic for natural resources in the House of Commons.
Stubbs was first appointed as the Shadow Minister for Natural Resources under Andrew Scheer’s Conservative government in 2017 but was left out the Conservative Party’s shadow ministry under the leadership of Erin O’Toole.
As of Oct. 12, the Natural Resources file was returned to Stubbs following Conservative Party of Canada Leader Pierre Poilievre’s new “Inflation busting Conservative Shadow Cabinet” announcement.
Poilievre has appointed 51 critics and another 20 associate critics.
Stubbs, who has sat on natural resources committees in various capacities since 2016, will continue her previous role as Natural Resource Critic for the official opposition to the Liberal Party.
Sitting opposite of her is Liberal MP Jonathan Wilkinson from the North Vancouver riding.
“The diverse and multi-faceted natural resources sector is a core pillar of the Canadian economy, and I look forward to continuing to champion the workers and communities who are its lifeblood,” said Stubbs in a statement provided to Lakeland This Week.
“Conservatives will advocate to make both traditional and new energy options more affordable and accessible by removing gatekeepers, and by bringing costs and red tape down, and project approvals up, with the aim to ensure production, transportation, and export infrastructure can actually get built.”
The Lakeland MP, who has vocally opposed many of the Liberal policies around energy and carbon taxation, says “The consequences of Liberal policies give money and leverage to brutal dictatorships by killing billions of dollars worth of LNG and pipeline infrastructure projects in Canada.”
In seeking clarification to the infrastructure projects Stubbs referred to, Greg Loerts a legislative and policy advisor in the MP’s office told Lakeland This Week that Stubbs is referring to the 18 LNG import and proposed export facilities listed on Natural Resources Canada’s website.
“Of those 18, zero have been built – and only two, LNG Canada and Woodfibre LNG are in the construction phase – LNG Canada is around 50 per cent complete, Woodfibre LNG starts construction next year,” stated Loerts.
“Canada has never actually exported any liquefied natural gas, simply because Canada has never had an LNG export terminal to do it from, despite 18 proposals since 2015, [while] similar jurisdictions, like the United States, actually completing seven between 2014 and 2020 and approving 20 more.”
Supporting clean and green innovation
Stubbs sees the growth and export of Canadian oil and gas as a way to help fund both clean tech and green innovation but says that policies and decisions made under the Trudeau government have “actually push[ed] global pollution up, and businesses out, leaving Canada without self-sufficiency.”
She adds that the current government’s past decisions are currently limiting Canada’s ability to support European allies that are in desperate need of more energy.
“Stalled or abandoned projects in oil and gas, nuclear, mineral development, and forestry are the result of NDP-Liberal anti-energy, anti-private sector legislation and policies,” she expressed.
Getting down to business, Stubbs also says she will work closely with her colleague MP Gérard Deltell, who Poilievre appointed to the Shadow Minister for Environment and Climate Change.
“Canada's wealth of energy, mineral, and forestry development and expertise is central to our country's future and bestows Canada a unique role in the world on energy security as an environmentally responsible, democratic, and transparent producer,” stated the Lakeland MP.
Stubbs wants to see big government out of the way so that private industry can lead the natural resource sector forward, increasing employment opportunities and injecting billions into the Canadian economy.
“I have served in this role previously, and of course am keenly aware how important the natural resources sector, along with agriculture, is to the people and communities across Lakeland and Alberta,” said Stubbs.
“I will continue to champion and bust myths about the world class work of the employees, suppliers, and producers in responsible oil and gas development across the province.”
Lakeland This Week was informed by Stubbs’ executive assistant that the Lakeland MP was unavailable for an interview on her appointment to Shadow Cabinet because her current schedule was filled due to the first week of committee meetings beginning.
