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Andrew Roman's avatar

We will get a lot more s*** done if we amend the Impact Assessment Act.

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Erin O’Toole's avatar

Agreed, but if they are going to waive it for a period of time that works too.

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Andrew Roman's avatar

That could work, but it also means that there is no organized, statute based environmental assessment at all if we don't use that statute.

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Erin O’Toole's avatar

True, but how long do you think it would take to replace it? IMO, the approach the provinces and feds are taking right now - designating and fast-tracking key projects - is the swifter and more strategic path in the short term. We still need to dump the tanker ban and fix the EA process in the medium to longer term.

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Andrew Roman's avatar

My first concern is that without at least a rudimentary non-political EA process There will be blockades and protests at the site of any construction, as well as constitutional litigation by First Nations. The IAA replaced the earlier legislation, which was working somewhat. It would not take long to revert to the previous legislation and to change the assignment of the Canadian Energy Regulator from reviewing everything in the current Act to everything in the former Act. By limiting interventions to written submissions, as used to be the practice, hearings can take a couple of months instead of several years.

I still remember when I was practising law and participating in hearings on pipelines, or working with the federal assessment group as a client, these hearings were quick, technical and ultimately uncontested. The PMO is ill equipped to become an environmental assessment body, and so is the federal cabinet. Yet that’s who will be doing the EA work, or pretending to do so.

A product of this limitation may be that the only projects being fast tracked will be renewable generation and transmission, nothing for fossil fuels. That’s because the green transition moves in that decarbonization direction. This will affect Alberta, Saskatchewan and even parts of BC if the project selection process is not visibly de-politicized.

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Georgette's avatar

Thank you Mr. O’Toole! This post is giving me hope. I hope you can convince your peers in the conservative party to jump on board. Great post. Happy Canada Day🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦

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Erin O’Toole's avatar

Bill 5 only passed with Conservative support and many of these issues were pushed by the CPC opposition for years. I believe that the desire to get things done in this moment is bipartisan.

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Dan Fournier's avatar

Wishing you a splendid Canada Day Mr. O'Toole.

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FootT's avatar

Happy Canada Day, Mr. O'Toole. Thanks for this.

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Dave Butters's avatar

Erin, thanks for this. On point for sure! I have also used our participation in both world wars as examples of what we can do when necessary. It can be done again, but it requires true leadership, focused objectves, strategic clarity, perseverance, and of course capital. Keep up your good work!

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Erin O’Toole's avatar

Thanks Dave.

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Mike's avatar

Thanks for a thoughtful and heartfelt column. Happy Canada day to you!

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John Selkirk's avatar

Erin, thank you for this timely reminder of past strengths and encouragement to reach those levels again. The last few months have been a wake up call; we must not ignore it. Perhaps we might even see a mobilization plan!

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Darcy Hickson's avatar

Great essay, thanks.

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CF's avatar

Thanks Erin for the reminder on this Canada Day of what the people of Canada can do when called upon to work hard to a goal. No more giving out money for some nebulous and unobtainable project that goes no where...although the money seems to disappear. I want a competant government who loves our country ....the country I grew up in. We have leaders (think Eby in BC) who I believe actually hate that country and the people who were so able.

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Erin O’Toole's avatar

All leaders love the country. Some have questionable paths to lead us forward, but that is part of a strong democracy. 🇨🇦

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Richard Hofer's avatar

Very fine writing. Deserves a very wide audience. A serious opposition could contribute to the current government very substantially.

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Kathleen Kells's avatar

Thank you, Erin, for this inspiring piece of writing I’m just reading on Canada Day here in the Beaches. I know Ashbridges Bay so well or thought I did until reading your piece. I had no idea it had once been a swamp then drained to build ships for Canada’s vital contribution to WWI. We did it back then and we can sure do it again now using Canadian steel and Canadian workers. It’s wonderful to know that where I used to play fetch the stick with my first German shepherd who as a puppy fell through the ice chasing ducks but got herself out before I would have been forced to jump in was once such a hive of productive industry. It’s still a beautiful spot and should have a commemorative plaque put up to recognize our past contributions to the war effort. We must lobby the mayor and council to do so.

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Erin O’Toole's avatar

Thanks for reading I road my bike through the area today and thought about it. Apart from Munition Street a little further west, there is literally no trace of this history.

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Kathleen Kells's avatar

I sent an email to our local city councillor Brad Bradford and copied Mayor Chow on it suggesting the city put up a commemorative plaque at Ashbridges Bay. Toronto keeps neglecting its history. That needs to change.

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Ian Gray's avatar

We will always proceed with one foot hard on the brake so long as we qualify all efforts at progress with the need to satisfy the hugely disparate, demanding and small portion(4.5%?)of our population which self identifies as indigenous. Sadly a well organized, self indulgent and questionably honest industry of grifters, the ‘Indian Industry’, has grown to impose delay and extort unearned wealth from the rest of society in the name of that minority, a society afraid to push back.

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Erin O’Toole's avatar

That is not the case Ian. From treaties to the constitution, the role of First Nations is clear. After centuries of not living up to our promises, there is reason for many to be skeptical. We need to focus on collaboration and benefit for all.

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Andrew H.'s avatar

Why did Laurentian elites (like yourself) sell Canada out during NATO negotiations to Americanize Canada:

Remove our flag, our anthem and Dominion Day?

Now you support politicians that seek to replace Canadians.

900k per year or 500k or even 250k.

But why should ya'll care, you'll be dead by the time we have to deal with your mess.

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Erin O’Toole's avatar

Very strange comments. I was not born when many of the things you describe happened.

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Andrew H.'s avatar

What Canada do you seek to conserve?

The Canada that Lester B Pearson and Pierre Trudeau and Justin Trudeau created or the Canada that Diefenbaker tried to save?

I understand that it is hard for most (as our education system is modernist propaganda) but Canada is not just a set of principles. It is a people and a place.

Canada is not some harry fairy land in which you touch our magic soul and poof you are Canadian!

Nor is Canada: "universal healthcare, Tim Horton's, poutine and beer. oh and being GAE (Global American Empire serfs) and fake"

Canada and her people have existed for much longer.

And if conservatives were smart they would stop playing in Lester/Trudeau's playpen of 60s+ by rejecting the mass replacement of Anglo and Francophones by foreigners that hate us and embracing a pre-1960s Canadian identity.

Your post is of Canada is anchored in WWI-WWII myth making of American Canada as a consumer product.

The people of that time and of that place would reject the cult of modern and Americanized Canada and Americanized sexual degeneracy. Pretending like we can obtain the work ethic and people without other conditions that were present at that time is silly.

Canada of the 1910s-1940s were a people of a place that had been honed by a Christian culture and years of tradition.

Not free access to porn and gays in a dress twerking at a library.

One does not need to be alive during the time of these things to be possessed by the ideology that destroyed Canada.

Canada was sold out by the current ruling regime. The same sort that you are somewhat pushing (in the form of Carney's plan).

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-canada-america-george-grant-economic-sovereignty/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lrvm-TMmG_A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pL12Cn7tGnk

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Erin O’Toole's avatar

Peace Order and Good Government is the starting point. Many of the issues you seem concerned about are a product of liberty that you cannot define for others. Ordered liberty is the philosophy and approach I have used to calibrate my approach. Liberty with a foundation of respect, strong institutions and order to allow the country to move forward.

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Andrew H.'s avatar

Liberty must be aimed towards the worship of God else it is self defeating and leads to idol worship (the point of Exodus and desert wonderings)

I don't see how Covid was good governance or Ordered liberty. All pandemic plans that existed to minimize economic and cultural impact were thrown in the garbage for a cynical power grab.

I don't see how mass importation of foreigner that do not share our history, tradition and culture was good governance or ordered liberty

If we had good governance Trump would not have us (pardon the vulgar term) by the balls.

Canada's institutions that are meant to promote Order actively demonize and hate white Canadians because most of them are too busy watching CNN and absorbing American anti-white culture.

Erin, sincerely, you are treating it like we are in the early days of Harper or Chretien. With a largely homogenous and high trust society.

Forward to what?

What are we going towards?

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Erin O’Toole's avatar

Too many people became victims of their algorithm during COVID. I see you are one of them. Your rhetoric shows hallmarks of many of the conspiracy theories and tropes that became normalized in that time. Great replacement theory, racial themes, culture wars, etc. You may not even realize how you have changed as a result of the algorithm, but I am sure some people in your life - family, co-workers - do notice. You will likely discount their views as being 'sheep' or some other word from your algorithm, but deep down you know they might be right. My advice is to do a digital detox. You are too smart to be so angry and directionless. Otherwise, please don't bring that crap to my thread where I want smart and serious debate.

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Andrew H.'s avatar

How disgusting.

How easily you can just disregard my humanity.

How easily you can disregard anything that does not fit neatly into your narrow view.

Just play the programmed script, "CONSPIRACY THEORIST!"

Instead of addressing the crux of the contention (that Covid was ill managed, that Canada is ill managed) you slander me.

Does this normally work for you?

I'd expect better from someone that wanted to become PM. Then again I'm not surprised. It is indicative of a ideological possession by WWII boomer truther.

Forward to what?

What are we going towards?

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Andrew H.'s avatar

1. Which conspiracy theory Erin?

https://open.alberta.ca/dataset/c89245b6-a7fc-4c24-be87-c2686341ffb5/resource/a652811e-42f2-4c0d-90af-54e0e759e05e/download/2014-albertas-pandemic-influenza-plan-apip-march-2014.pdf

The pdf attached is the 2014 Alberta Pandemic plan.

It has 4 goals:

1. Controlling the spread of influenza disease and reducing illness (morbidity) and death (mortality) by providing access to appropriate prevention measures, care, and treatment.

2. Mitigating societal disruption in Alberta through ensuring the continuity and recovery of critical services.

3. Minimizing adverse economic impact.

4. Supporting an efficient and effective use of resources during response and recovery.

Did Alberta or any province meet this goals?

Why was this plan thrown out (all provinces and Fed had similar plans) in favour of ever changing plans?

Erin, Why has there been no study or inquiry into the effectiveness (outside of the Citizen led inquiry that found the government negligent) of covid policies such as masking, lockdowns, social distancing and vaccine passports? Nearly every other country has admitted covid policies were a failure. Why can't Canada?

Why is Tam getting an order of Canada while Canadians that were vaccine injured are still being denied financial compensation and treatment (other than self deletion)?

2. What do you call 1,000,000 foreigners every year? What is that Erin?

It's clearly immigration. How many before I can call it MASS immigration? 2,000,000? 1 billion?

I would kindly ask (pardon my crude language again) that you do not piss on my leg and tell me its raining.

"By 1971, Canadians of European origin continued to account for 96 percent of the 21.5 million people in the total population."https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/csj-sjc/jsp-sjp/rp02_8-dr02_8/p5.html

"In 2021, just over 25 million people reported being White in the census, representing close to 70%." https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221026/dq221026b-eng.htm

in 50 years the "white" (government term) population grew by 4.5 million.

How did they ("whites") go from 96% to 70%? This is government data Erin. Is the government lying?

Have you been to Brampton lately?

When my family go to a store in the place we grew up nobody speaks English or French, they are speaking foreign languages. They partake in foreign customs and practices that make our society low trust and foreign.

You'll call me racist because you are an American anti-white Third world-er and your reaction to ethnic tribalism against native Canadian white people is to slander the white people as racist.

Erin I don't need an algorithm to see that my hometown is now majority foreign born.

Now you'll tell me, "and that's a good thing!"

HOW DARE I think that my children should be able to grow up and speak to the people around me with a shared culture, language and tradition.

I hope you are not confessing through projection because I do have direction and purpose. Towards Christ and my family and my community of whom I have wonderful relationships :D.

I don't hold any racial amanous in my heart as racial bigotry is a sin.

But that does not mean allowing other tribal groups carte blanche to our country as most of these groups view us as suckers or seek to create new ethnic/religious enclaves in Canada (see Hindus, Kalistanis, Muslims, Jews).

Admission to any group (especially a country or clan of people) requires sacrifice such as marriage into the group and is done slowly.

Can you explain Erin how assimilation is going on the 15 million Trudeau open border immigrates?

What with their sectarian violence outside temples.

Their barbaric slaughter practices?

Canada is and must remain a Christian Country.

It is ridiculously to think that importing the third will not turn Canada into the third world.

One would have to believe in the nonsense of the blank slate and magically becomes a Canadian on our magic soil.

Imagine wanting to conserve Trudeau's version of Fake and GAE Americanized Canada.

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Ray's avatar
3dEdited

Thank you, sir. Well said. Happy Canada/Dominion Day!

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Mike Canary's avatar

Outstanding essay Erin! Thank you so much. God Bless you and your family. Happy Canada Day 🇨🇦

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