‘IT’S NOT BUSINESS AS USUAL’: NOTLEY

Accuses B.C. of playing ‘legal rope-a-dope’

EDMONTON •Rachel Notley defended her decision to skip this week’s Western Premiers’ Conference saying that when it comes to interprovincial relations “it’s not business as usual — not even close.”

The Alberta premier spoke Tuesday, hours after British Columbia announced another legal action linked to the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

Speaking with reporters in Edmonton, Notley accused the B.C. government of trying to “play legal rope-a-dope until the cows come home.”

Also Tuesday, B.C. Attorney General David Eby announced his government was suing Alberta over Bill 12 — Alberta’s Preserving Canada’s Economic Prosperity Act. The legislation gives Alberta the power to restrict the amount of crude oil, natural gas and refined fuels flowing west. But B.C. contends Bill 12 is unconstitutional.

Eby insisted his government was not deploying delay tactics.

“It is not to stop the pipeline, it is not to prevent it, it is to ensure we have the adequate protections in place for when the pipeline is built and turned on,” he said.

Notley scoffed that “is simply not true.”

B.C. is already fighting the $7.4 billion pipeline project in the federal Court of Appeal and in B.C. Supreme Court.

“(The B.C. government) must think everybody was born yesterday. We can tell this is a long strategy trying to inject uncertainty into the project,” said Notley.

Repeated court cases have spooked Kinder Morgan. The oil giant suspended all nonessential spending on Trans Mountain last month, and said it can’t see a way forward with the pipeline unless there’s some kind of agreement by May 31.

With the deadline just days away, delicate conversations around those complex decisions require her to stay in Alberta rather than heading to the Western Premiers’ Conference, Notley said Tuesday.

“If we were a long ways away from a decision point on the pipeline, maybe spending 45 minutes chastising (B.C. Premier) John Horgan in front of other premiers would be a good use of my time, but quite honestly, right now, we’re very close,” Notley said.

“My time is better spent here.”

The main focus of the conference is likely to be the development of a national pharmacare program.

Notley said issues such as pharmacare are important and Alberta will be represented by deputy premier and Minister of Health Sarah Hoffman.

“In representing Alberta at the table, we want to make something very clear,” she said. “If we want to make sure that every Canadian can get the medications they need, we need to be able to pay for it.

“While they are at the premiers meeting talking about how to spend that kind of money, I’ll be here in Alberta talking about how we can earn that kind of money.”

Notley said one participant at the meeting — Horgan — was trying to shut down the Trans Mountain pipeline and take $15 billion out of the Canadian economy.

“Pharmacare does not grow on trees,” she said. “In order to protect and improve the things that matter to people, like pharmacare, we need a strong, functioning national economy.

“Canada has to work for all Canadians. That’s why we’re fighting for the pipeline.”

Other western premiers have started to weigh in on the matter that’s dividing Canada.

“It’s a very divisive and important issue,” said Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister.

“At the same time — a pipeline that would matter greatly to the Canadian economy, that has gone through all of the regulatory hoops, which are onerous, now being blocked by the actions of the British Columbia government ... highlights the need for us to have a rules-based system in our country.”