Energy Politics
In an interview with Postmedia News, Natural Resources minister Joe Oliver repeated his contention that the Northern Gateway is vital to the national interest of Canada and suggested the government won’t be pushed around, adding: “We can’t let unlawful people oppose lawful development.”
See Protests won’t stop Northern Gateway pipeline, minister says
The oil industry’s “nation-building” attempt to link Canada’s vast oilsands resources to Asian markets can’t be stopped by protesters using civil disobedience, Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver said Tuesday.
He said he will respect the regulatory process that Enbridge Inc. must go through to get approval for its $5.5-billion Northern Gateway pipeline, but said the project, if approved by the National Energy Board, shouldn’t be held hostage by aboriginal and environmental groups threatening to create a human “wall” to prevent construction.