OTTAWA — Former environment minister Steven Guilbeault will resign as a Liberal MP. He will make the announcement to his colleagues Wednesday morning in caucus and will give a speech at the House of Commons later in the afternoon to explain his reasons.
A source close to Guilbeault confirmed the information to the National Post after news of his impending resignation was reported by different media outlets. A separate source close to environmental groups said Guilbeault has invited guests to be in the House of Commons gallery on Wednesday.
The first source confirmed Guilbeault is leaving politics because of the recent deal Prime Minister Mark Carney struck with Alberta to advance a new oil pipeline to the West Coast, but also because of the government’s environmental policies in general.
“I think it came to a point where he could not endorse what they were doing anymore,” added the source who was not authorized to publicly speak on the matter.
Guilbeault is expected to stay on as MP until the end of the spring session to not affect the government’s slim majority government, added the source.
Others are not expected to follow his example. Government House leader Steven MacKinnon said on Tuesday he was not particularly worried about the government losing its majority due to resignations because of the government’s environmental policies.
In fact, the co-chair of the Liberal climate caucus, Éric St-Pierre, told National Post that he “absolutely” supports Carney’s environmental agenda.
Guilbeault is a lifelong environmentalist who co-founded the environmental organization Équiterre and worked for Greenpeace. His most famous protest was in 2001 when he climbed the CN Tower in Toronto after Canada failed to ratify the Kyoto agreement.
Guilbeault was elected MP for Laurier—Sainte-Marie in Montreal in 2019, when climate issues were higher on voters’ radars. He served as Canadian heritage minister before landing his dream job as environment minister in Justin Trudeau’s government.
Guilbeault however was shuffled out of environment and landed in the role of minister of Canadian identity and Quebec lieutenant once Carney came to power.
Guilbeault resigned from cabinet in November when Carney announced a memorandum of understanding with Alberta. In a letter, the former minister slammed the idea of building a new pipeline to the West Coast, adding that it would increase Canada’s emissions.
In the past six months, as a Liberal MP, Guilbeault was more vocal about his criticism but insisted he was still working in the background to influence the government’s direction.
He was particularly critical of the government’s proposal to speed up Canada’s regulatory process for major projects, going even as far as saying those changes went further than former prime minister Stephen Harper’s rollback of environmental protections.
Earlier this month, he hinted that he might reconsider his future in the party after the government formally penned an agreement with Alberta for a pipeline.
Even before he formally announced his departure, Liberal colleagues had nice words for him.
Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said she is a “good friend” of Guilbeault and considers herself to be an environmentalist but still defended the government’s work with Alberta.
“I also think that we need to be able to have one of the most important provinces that is the major energy producer of Canada as part of our plan. And therefore, you can have the best possible plan (but) you need to make it work, you need to be pragmatic,” she said.
Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin said she worked as Guilbeault’s parliamentary secretary for six years and said he is “a very valued member of our team.”
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who has regularly lambasted Guilbeault publicly, said after a gathering of Western premiers in Alberta, “I wish him well in his future endeavours.”
Keith Stewart, senior energy strategist at Greenpeace Canada, said the departure of Guilbeault, whom he applauded as the country’s “most prominent political champion for nature” is “deeply concerning.”
“This is a red flag larger than the climate banner that Steven Guilbeault hung at the top of the CN Tower back in his Greenpeace days,” he said in an interview.
“The Liberal Party should have a rethink of the direction they’re heading in when they can’t keep Steven Guilbeault.”
Stewart, who previously worked with Guilbeault, said the Liberal MP has been an environmental champion for decades, and believes he will do so in whatever he does next.
Stewart said he is planning to go to the CN Tower on Wednesday and might send Guilbeault a little video to tease him.
“We can climb it again.”
National Post
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