GPC News Release 18 November 2010 - 9:51am
OTTAWA -- The Green Party of Canada is denouncing the decision of the Canadian Senate to kill the Climate Change Accountability Act, Bill C-311, and in so doing, killing Canada's best chance to take real action on climate change and move into a Green economy.
"With COP16 less than two weeks away in Mexico, it is stunning that the Conservative majority in the Senate would use a sneak attack to defeat the only climate legislation before Parliament," said Green Leader Elizabeth May.
Elizabeth May is now calling on Canadians to get on the airwaves and into the newspapers letters section to protest this anti-democratic move. The Bill had passed Third Reading in the House of Commons in May. After being presented to Senate 193 days ago, Bill C-311 was defeated 43-32, with no debate and without being sent back to committee, an extraordinary move not seen in over seventy years.
"Voters should be outraged at the hypocrisy of Prime Minister Harper for using the Senate as an end-run around the House of Commons when he campaigned vigorously for an accountable Senate. His obvious abhorrence of the Bill surely influenced the Conservative members of the now stacked Senate who killed this Bill without any consideration," said May.
"Harper’s assertion that action on climate change throws millions of people out of work is utter absurdity. We could be putting Canadians to work in a Green economy, but this government only hears the special pleadings of the fossil fuel lobby. Even though we pledged at the G20 to kill fossil fuel subsidies, we have not even done that," said May.
A 2009 study by the European Commission found almost half a million jobs will be created by reaching their target of 20% of energy coming from renewables by 2020.
The Green Party of Canada has supported Bill C-311 all through the House process and into the Senate, urging non-partisan cooperation. Senator Grant Mitchell stepped up to sponsor the bill. The Bill mandated reduction targets for greenhouse gas emissions and regular assessments of progress toward those targets.
From http://greenparty.ca/media-release/2010-11-18/greens-decry-conservative-snap-vote-climate-change-bill
