INNISFAIL - Red Deer-Mountain View Member of Parliament Earl Dreeshen says the federal government needs to do more to ensure pipelines are built to help get more Canadian oil and gas to Europe to replace supplies from Russia.
Speaking in the House of Commons on March 3, Dreeshen said the war in Ukraine has shown the need for increased national energy exports.
“The time for Canada to step up has never been so critical,” said Dreeshen. “We need to get new pipelines built to tidewater to displace Russian natural gas.
“European nations have realized that they cannot be held energy hostages and that global analysis of this reality is now needed more than ever. This is part of a long-term fix but not county is better suited to assist in this than Canada.”
In response to Dreeshen’s comments, MP Mark Gerretsen, Liberal Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government, said European countries are not interested in replacing Russian oil and gas with Canadian petroleum products.
“They don’t want to be dependent on another country and they are very much interested in looking for a fast transition to renewables,” said Gerretsen.
“Why is it that Conservatives think Europe wants to transfer its dependency from one-third country to another third country? They don’t want to do that.”
During his address in the House as part of a parliamentary debate on the war in the Ukraine, Dreeshen said Canada must take other steps response to the conflict.
“We believe that Canada must strengthen our own defences and renew our commitment to the NATO alliance in the face of threats from Russia,” said Dreeshen.
“We know that Canada’s security is inextricably tied to that of Europe and that now is the time for us to acknowledge that fact with action.”
Specifically, Dreeshen called for renewed security measures in northern Canada.
“There needs to bet a serious plan for Canada’s Arctic that will address the aging NORAD early warning system, fix our broken military procurement system and ensure that we work in close collaboration with Scandinavian countries and the U.S. to ensure Arctic peace and security,” said Dreeshen.
