Premiers to push for pipelines, ports and mines in fast-track bill meeting with Carney

National Post

2 days ago

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The federal government is developing what it calls a 'national interest' bill to fast-track a small number of nation-building projects with a streamlined regulatory approval process as a substitute for reviews under the Impact Assessment Act.
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Which projects are the main topic of debate on Monday, with a heavy emphasis on critical minerals mining, energy and ports.
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Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Friday his priority is mining in the 'Ring of Fire,' a region about 500 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, Ont., that contains massive deposits of critical minerals. Another priority is building a new nuclear plant in the province.
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Ford said he believes Carney will pick a few priorities across the country that would have a major impact.
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'One has to be the pipelines,' Ford said, adding Canada can't 'be relying on the U.S. any longer' as its primary energy customer.
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Ford said he believes Carney wants to work collaboratively with the provinces and that Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe told him Friday morning he's excited to host the event.
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'I think a priority is to bring the whole country together,' Ford said. 'The previous government and previous prime minister didn't show enough love, in my opinion, to Alberta and Saskatchewan.
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Moe offered to host the meeting when he spoke with Carney soon after the federal election. Moe said on social media in May that this will be the first meeting between the prime minister and the premiers held in his province in 40 years.
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The gathering comes as both Saskatchewan and Manitoba have declared province-wide states of emergency as wildfires threaten communities in remote northern regions. In Manitoba, 17,000 residents have been forced from their homes in recent days, while more than 4,000 people in Saskatchewan have had to evacuate.
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In a mid-May letter to Carney, Moe pitched 10 policy changes he said the federal government should make to reset Ottawa's relationship with Saskatchewan.
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His requests include starting negotiations with China to remove its tariffs on Canadian agri-food products, repealing the oil and gas emissions cap, expanding pipeline capacity and building trade and economic corridors across the country.
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'Your government has the ability to move forward on all 10 of these items quickly, which would clearly signal a new, more positive relationship between Saskatchewan and the federal government than we have had for the past 10 years,' the letter said.
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I have written to PM @MarkJCarney outlining our 'Strong Saskatchewan, Strong Canada Plan' - 10 key policy changes the federal government must make to reset Ottawa's relationship with Saskatchewan.
The PM has the ability to move forward on all 10 of these items quickly, which… pic.twitter.com/wLsNlls5pV
— Scott Moe (@PremierScottMoe) May 14, 2025