Climate change is not top issue, Ambrose. And Conservative inaction
Posted by Tyler Kinch on October 8th, 2006
I’m getting so sick of this. Our environment minister and our Government keeps on dodging the environment issue. We’ve had eight months of “we are developing a made in Canada plan†which has now turned into an “approach†which no deals have been made public. And also during these eight months we’ve heard the phrase “Liberal inaction†countless times. Liberal inaction, sure I agree with that! But what is the Conservative government going to do about it? Right now it looks like they are going down a worse path than the Liberals – Liberal and Conservative inaction. Cutting programs will save money, but if you don’t replace it with anything, the environment loses.
Climate change is a top issue. If Rona Ambrose can’t see this, then she must resign from her portfolio. Right now she is acting as the Minister of Profit for Oil and Gas. The environment is a time sensitive issue and voters will realize this in the next election.
October 8th, 2006 at 4:15 pm
From the CBC link you provided:
“Bill C-288, An Act to Ensure Canada Meets its Global Climate Change Obligations Under the Kyoto Protocol, was approved 152-115 at second reading and will now go to the Commons committee for more study.”
More study!
The Opposition wants to debate it further as this indicates.
So, while they complain that the government has not yet revealed the full program/direction that will be taken to deal with the environment….(coming soon is the word, and I too hope it will be fullsome and contructive in its scope), all they want to do is continue debate on Kyoto.
Does anyone seriously think that is progressive…more debate on Kyoto, when other countries are backing away from the goals that have proved to be unachievable?
October 8th, 2006 at 4:46 pm
Just This,
The bill is going to a Commons committee for more study because that is the process it must go through. Trust me the opposition parties would move this to a third reading today if that were possible. But thanks for coming out.
As for the government - their new Green Plan will do nothing but cause 5 years of delay before anything will be done. If the Conservatives were serious, which of course everyone knows they are not, things could be done right now with existing regulations, but why act now when you can delay things for at least 5 years.
So, yes there are delays going on, BUT they are caused by the Conservative “head in the sand” government.
As for other countries backing away - yes a couple countries through their own complete inaction will not achieve their targets (Canada being the worst offender), but check out countries like the UK who have blown past their targets and are achieving new tougher targets they have set for themselves. It won’t be long before, per capita, we produce double the emissions of the UK - that is disgusting.
October 8th, 2006 at 6:57 pm
We haven’t even been given the package, the manner in which this government is going to respond, yet.
How can one say they have nothing to offer and that they do not care about the environment.
Conservatives have families. They see what changes are happening in the weather patterns and the crop production, quite acutely from my circle.
It is not reasonable to presume conservatives, as a group, are oblivious to the consequences of not turning down the heat, and cleaning up the air and water.
And this whole return to Kyoto debate is solely due to the opposition trying to make points by bringing forward this motion in a minority government.
What possibly will it do when the world is changing its mind on how effective it will be.
But thank goodnes, the debate about it all is pushing out ahead of any politician doing it for politics.
People want clean air and water…and if in the mix, there is a measure to moderating weather, let’s get after that, too.
And no grumbling when the conequences of those demands hit the pocketbooks of every single one of us…not one peep…
October 8th, 2006 at 7:05 pm
The fact that they haven’t brought forth the package, which they promised by now, is a major reason they are being criticized. I’d be happy to see the Conservative government show us what they have planned, but they haven’t done that by the date they said they would.
And the quotes I used are straight from Ambrose’s mouth, so I think you should be asking her why she doesn’t think climate change is important.
October 8th, 2006 at 8:28 pm
I was going by your statement:
“If the Conservatives were serious, which of course everyone knows they are not”
So, let’s see what they have to offer up and hopefully we will find things we both want in there;)
October 8th, 2006 at 8:50 pm
That wasn’t me… but I will stay it’s pretty obvious that Harper’s government doesn’t care about the environment. First of all they have somebody in the Minister postion who is unqualified. Also the staff that’s getting appointed are also unqualified.
They sure haven’t been showing that they care about the environment from what they’ve done so far.
October 9th, 2006 at 1:26 pm
just this,
-How can one say they have nothing to offer and that they do not care about the environment.-
I didn’t say that Conservatives do not care about the environment. I said that the Conservative party doesn’t take the environment “seriously.”
There is a difference.
For instance, I have no doubt that the Liberal party “cares” about the environment, but 13 years showed us that they don’t take it “seriously”.
On the other hand the Green Party takes the environment “seriously,” but nobody “cares.”
99% of the people I know care about the environment, maybe 1% are serious. That is why the polls show that everyone cares and is concerned, yet on a whole Canadians buy bigger SUVs and bigger 4×4 trucks every year.
I am sure that Premier McGuinty and Buzz Hargrove care about the environment, but their recent statements regarding auto emissions show they are not serious.
Rona might care about the environment, but she cares about the tar sands more.
-Conservatives have families. They see what changes are happening in the weather patterns and the crop production, quite acutely from my circle.
It is not reasonable to presume conservatives, as a group, are oblivious to the consequences of not turning down the heat, and cleaning up the air and water.-
I don’t think that all conservatives are oblivious to the environment, just the ones that are elected to government.
I know some conservatives who are environmentalists and on the whole they are disgusted with the party in Ottawa.
And lets be honest, some Conservatives are oblivious to climate change - thinking it a big conspiracy.
-And this whole return to Kyoto debate is solely due to the opposition trying to make points by bringing forward this motion in a minority government.-
The majority of Canadians support kyoto and voted for parties who support Kyoto, yet a minority party has basically pulled us out. Therefore it is the job of the opposition parties to try to represent the views of the majority of Canadians which are being ignored by the government.
-What possibly will it do when the world is changing its mind on how effective it will be.-
That is not true. Countries that have attempted to achieve results are achieving results. The EU on a whole will achieve their targets.
-People want clean air and water…and if in the mix, there is a measure to moderating weather, let’s get after that, too.-
People have said that they want climate change to be a priority. The Liberal government ignored the people on this issue and so are the Conservatives.
-And no grumbling when the conequences of those demands hit the pocketbooks of every single one of us…not one peep… -
Lots of things cost money. Our military costs a lot of money, but we accept that because we feel that it is worth the expense.
Dealing with climate change will cost money (although the state of california has worked out the finanaces and they feel that dealing with climate change is a gold mine), but the sooner we accept that the less the costs will be and greater the benefits.
October 10th, 2006 at 1:54 pm
“The EU on a whole will achieve their targets.”
I plucked out this one because I think Europe has not the same complex issues around targets, since its neighbors, Russia, and The Ukraine, and The Middle East, do the heavy dirty work of producing the oil for European customers.
It saves those European countries from the requirement of having to reduce emmissions in the same profound way. Is that not correct?
But I do hear you on how difficult this is going to be to promote the real effort it is going to take to clean up things here.
My final point would be that not all are invested in the same way as you are, the Greens, I mean, but make no mistake in presuming that others do not care.
They elect governments to take care of the details…and hope the legislation will be doable.