Following the CEO of Suncor’s appearance at a parliamentary committee, NDP calls on Liberals to defend Canadians

OTTAWA – On Tuesday, NDP critic for Natural Resources Charlie Angus (Timmins – James Bay), and NDP critic for Emergency Preparedness Richard Cannings (South Okanagan—West Kootenay), joined by award-winning author John Vaillant, urged the Liberals to put forward a real plan to stop Big Oil’s unchecked greed and place a strong emissions cap on Big Oil to stop their decades-long free ride by consecutive Liberal and Conservative governments.

The call comes one day after a motion from Angus brought Suncor CEO Rich Kruger to a parliamentary committee to answer questions about how their practices impact the climate crisis and the loss of Canadian jobs—particularly in Alberta— despite record profits for Big Oil.

“All we heard from CEO Kruger was prepared talking points,” said Angus. “He admitted he’s never even read the Clean Fuel Standards, and he had no idea how many jobs will continue to be lost in Alberta,” said Angus. “He took shockingly little responsibility for Suncor’s role in the climate emergency despite Big Oil having decades of climate science warning that industry of the ‘catastrophic’ harm that was being done.

While Big Oil CEOs scramble to make every dollar they can at the detriment to Canadians’ health, our environment and even our workers’ livelihood, the Liberals have given Big Oil free rein to fuel the climate crisis and maximize profits. Canadians who’ve lived through one of the worst wildfire seasons on record have had enough.”

At the committee, in response to questions by the NDP, Kruger refused to call the climate disasters that Canadians faced this summer a “catastrophe.”

“Big Oil companies raked in billions of dollars while communities across Canada were ravaged by forest fires over the summer. These companies are taking no responsibility for their decades-long pollution,” said Cannings. “Minister Guilbeault can say all the right things, but his government still lets ultra-rich CEOs off the hook for putting their shareholders first over Canadians. New Democrats are calling for a real plan to put an end to their greed and protect the future of our planet.