Liberal MPs keep B.C. North Coast oil tanker ban in place, defeating Conservative bill C-264

The Story

Federal Liberal MPs voted along party lines to keep the B.C. North Coast oil tanker ban in place Wednesday, defeating a Conservative bill that would have repealed it.

The vote took place during second reading in the House of Commons, where only Conservative MPs voted to move Bill C-264 forward to the committee stage. Conservatives had argued the repeal would allow a proposal from Calgary-based Strathcona Resources to ship up to 250,000 barrels of Canadian oil daily through Prince Rupert, B.C., using existing rail lines.

Before the vote, Conservative natural resources critic Carol Anstey said Conservatives were prepared to work with the Liberals on amendments if they had concerns about legislation to see the Strathcona proposal advance. She also argued the plan was a private-sector pitch without public subsidies.

Prime Minister Mark Carney, who struck a deal with the B.C. government earlier in the summer to keep the ban in place, appeared in person in the House of Commons to vote on several bills that day, including C-264.

After making the tanker ban deal, Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced that the proposed pipeline route to the West Coast would go south to respect the tanker ban. Smith, who originally envisioned the pipeline going north, backed the Conservative bill to repeal the ban and said Canada cannot become an energy superpower while federal policies stand in the way of getting energy to the world.

Under the existing Oil Tanker Moratorium Act, tankers are prohibited from carrying more than 12,500 metric tonnes of crude oil in areas along B.C.’s northern coast.