Carney faces pipeline pressure ahead of premiers meeting focused on infrastructure

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Prime Minister Mark Carney was facing provincial pressure to support a new oil pipeline and repeal a federal environmental review law as he prepared to join premiers at a Monday first ministers meeting focused on fast-tracking major infrastructure projects and reducing red tape.

Ahead of Monday’s meeting in Saskatoon, Ontario announced separate agreements with each of Saskatchewan, Alberta and Prince Edward Island to reduce trade barriers between them. Lowering these interprovincial barriers was expected to be another major theme of Mr. Carney’s meeting with the premiers, his first since winning the federal election.

The provinces have inked non-binding memorandums of understanding with Ontario in which they pledge to work on bilateral deals, including direct-to-consumer alcohol sales, and to work with interested jurisdictions on a national framework.

At a roundtable discussion with leaders in the energy sector Sunday, Mr. Carney reiterated his message that Canada needs to diversify its economy in the face of existential threats from U.S. President Donald Trump.

“It’s a critical time for our country. The world’s certainly more divided and dangerous and the imperative of making Canada an energy superpower in all respects has never been greater,” Mr. Carney said.

Premiers have submitted to Mr. Carney their wish lists for projects to be deemed in the national interest, which include infrastructure to access minerals in Ontario’s northern Ring of Fire region, a pipeline that would transport oil from Alberta to the West Coast, and a trade corridor out of Manitoba’s Port of Churchill, among others.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s pipeline push – and her argument that the failure to prioritize an oil pipeline would “send an unwelcome signal to Albertans concerned about Ottawa’s commitment to national unity” – is expected to dominate discussions at the meeting, as are her calls to scrap policies from the previous Liberal government, such as Bill C-69, the Environmental Assessment Act, which critics have dubbed the “no more pipelines” law.

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Appearing alongside Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe in Saskatoon on Sunday to announce Ontario’s sixth interprovincial trade agreement, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he hopes Mr. Carney expresses support for a new pipeline at the meeting.

“I’d like to encourage him to say that. We can’t rely on the U.S.,” Mr. Ford said. He added that the federal government has to scrap C-69 as well.

Mr. Moe, along with his fellow Western premiers, has been pushing a “port to port” corridor in Western Canada to open up the Asian and European markets.

“Credit to Prime Minister Carney. I think he is aware that there’s, you know, a feeling of alienation in certain areas of the nation,” Mr. Moe said.

As trade uncertainty clouds the economic outlook for Canada, the federal and provincial governments have stressed the urgency of bolstering the country’s economic independence by boosting internal trade, beefing up infrastructure and leaning into the natural resources sector.

But not all premiers appear to be on the same page.

B.C. Premier David Eby on Saturday called Alberta’s demands “very predictable” and said a proposal for a new pipeline currently does not exist.

“If, finally, a project is proposed and financed, whether private or public, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” said Mr. Eby, who stressed that he wants to focus on collaboration. He is not attending the meeting because he left on a trade mission to Asia on Saturday, but he is sending Deputy Premier Niki Sharma in his place.

Western premiers push for trade corridor to help Canadian goods reach Asian markets

Mr. Carney is also expected to brief premiers on legislation that would remove federal barriers to internal trade and fast-track approvals for projects of national interest so that they would be given the greenlight within two years. It would also allow the federal government to modify regulatory requirements on all projects deemed to be in the national interest.

However, the proposed “One Canadian Economy” legislation has been met with backlash from Indigenous communities, which were given one week to provide feedback on the bill, over concerns that it could infringe on their constitutional right to be consulted on such projects.

“We totally oppose this ‘fast-tracking’ approach to development on our homelands as it ignores our jurisdiction, our Treaty rights and our interests,” Neskantaga Chief Gary Quisess wrote in a letter to Mr. Carney.

The Assembly of First Nations on Monday said it was “very concerned” the Prime Minister’s proposal to fast-track national projects has the potential to violate First Nations rights, and criticized what it called an “unacceptably short” timeframe to respond to the plan.

“If the national vision for First Nations infrastructure is focused exclusively on accessing natural resources, First Ministers need to rethink and broaden their perspective,” said National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak in a statement. “Canada needs to start with fast-tracking the basics like clean water, quality housing, modern schools, all-season roads and community infrastructure.”

Audrey Champoux, a spokesperson from the Prime Minister’s Office, told The Globe and Mail that some Indigenous groups were invited to a closed-door reception on Sunday ahead of the first ministers’ meeting. However, the PMO would not confirm which groups would be in attendance.

Provincial bills in British Columbia and Ontario aimed at speeding up natural resource projects have also been criticized by Indigenous communities, which say they were not consulted on these pieces of legislation.

In response, B.C. has pledged to include a requirement for projects to receive approval from affected First Nations in the regulations of Bill 15, which would give the provincial government sweeping powers to expedite infrastructure projects. Ontario is amending its proposed legislation to reaffirm its constitutional obligation to consult First Nations, but the bill still faces heavy opposition.

Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew said last week that governments should take the time to engage Indigenous communities on projects.