A selection of quotes following first ministers meeting on climate change

By The Canadian Press

OTTAWA – First ministers emerged from a day-long summit Friday hailing a pan-Canadian agreement on climate change. Saskatchewan’s Brad Wall flatly refused to sign on while Manitoba’s Brian Pallister withheld his signature to protest the lack of a deal on health care funding.

Here’s a selection of what was said after the meeting ended, including from a compelling back-and-forth between Wall and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau:

___

“I’m very happy to share with you the results of many months of hard work: the pan-Canadian framework on clean growth and climate change, an ambitious and achievable framework to address climate change and grow the clean economy for our children and grandchildren.” — Trudeau.

___

“Our goal is to have Canada powered by 90 per cent clean energy by 2030. That’s a goal we can achieve through the phase-out of coal-fired power, along with greater reliance on renewables like hydro, wind and solar power.” — Trudeau.

___

“We have created a framework that meets each of our region’s unique needs while serving the entire country.” — Yukon Premier Sandy Silver, chair of the premiers.

___

“We are arguably Canada’s greenest province … At the same time, we also, as is no secret, have some monumental challenges, in particular in the area of health care.” — Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister.

___

“We want to build a partnership with our partners across the country on securing sustainable health care just as we are ambitious about sustainable environmental management.” — Pallister.

___

“No one ought to mistake this for a lack of interest or will or desire to impact this issue but if it’s a carbon tax and it’s imposed federally, we’re not signing on.” — Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall.

___

“The benchmark that we announced in October will continue to apply across the country, with $10 a tonne in 2018 rising to $50 a tonne by 2022, across 100 per cent of this country.” — Trudeau on imposing federal carbon tax on provinces that don’t impose their own.

___

“I’m just saying, let’s not be naive as Canadians. (The United States) is our No. 1, not just trading partner but competitor for investments in energy, in you name it, and we need to be competitive with them.” — Wall on president-elect Donald Trump having no plans to tackle climate change.

___

“I think all Canadians know that Canadian climate policy will be set by Canadians, not by whoever happens to be the president of the United States.” — Trudeau.

___

“You can’t have a national carbon tax where the westerners who produce the energy are paying double what the people in central Canada are paying to use the energy, in terms of an additional carbon tax.” — B.C. Premier Christy Clark, earlier Friday before winning concessions.

___

“There was an issue of fundamental fairness that we needed to see resolved in the agreement … We wouldn’t have been able to sign on without those changes.” — Clark.

___

“In Ontario, for example, there’s already been a cost associated for Ontarians in reducing carbon emissions. We shut down our coal-fired plants and some of you may have heard about our electricity prices in Ontario … It’s a bit of a red herring to just compare the price on the carbon emissions. We need to look at all of the cost associated and all of the things that jurisdictions are doing to come up with those equivalencies.” — Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne.

___

“Once again Canada lets the slowest province set the pace on climate change, which is exactly what today was supposed to fix. More than ever the moment calls for bold leadership, but we continue to bow to the lowest common denominator.” — Peter McCartney of the environmental group Wilderness Committee on the fact B.C. will be able to resist increasing its own carbon tax, depending on where other provinces stand.

___

“Canada is performing some serious mental gymnastics, pretending it’s a climate leader while dramatically ramping up the tar sands. We’re headed for a brick wall but we’ve got our foot on both the gas and the brake.” — McCartney.

___

“This is a big deal; Canada finally has a climate change framework that has broad buy-in from provinces. Whether it’s coal-fired power, homes and buildings, or personal vehicles, the plan puts Canada on the path to phasing out fossil fuels over time and replacing them with clean, renewable energy.” — Dale Marshall of Environmental Defence.

___

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today