Jagmeet Singh says Supreme Court should resolve B.C.-Alberta pipeline impasse

NDP leader says the federal and B.C. governments should send joint reference question to high court. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is urging the federal and B.C. governments to ask the Supreme Court to settle a jurisdictional brawl over a proposed pipeline expansion. Caught in the middle of a standoff between the NDP premiers of B.C. and Alberta over the Trans Mountain pipeline project, Singh laid out his plan for breaking the deadlock today. He said the federal government should submit with B.C. a joint reference question for the high court to consider. “What I’m proposing is a path forward that actually brings people together,” he said during a news conference on Parliament Hill today. It’s not clear how long the Supreme Court would take to render a decision on a Trans Mountain reference, but in past reference cases the court has taken several months to deliver decisions after hearing arguments. The government of B.C. Premier John Horgan announced in February that it will ask the courts to decide if it has the right to restrict the flow of diluted bitumen in the Trans Mountain pipeline. Singh said going the Supreme Court route would still be more efficient than waiting for B.C. to go through its own legal process. Singh has so far refused to take sides in the escalating feud between Premier Horgan and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley over the pipeline expansion, saying it’s a matter for the federal government to resolve. Notley’s government announced Tuesday it plans to introduce legislation that would give the province the power to reduce oil flows, which would lead to a spike in gas prices in B.C. Alberta willing to buy Trans Mountain pipeline if necessary, premier says Alberta willing to buy Trans Mountain pipeline if necessary, premier says B.C. stakeholders, experts respond to Kinder Morgan’s deadline ultimatum for Trans Mountain pipeline Tensions over the Trans Mountain expansion have been building since Kinder Morgan suspended all non-essential spending on the project on Sunday. The company has given the federal government until May 31 to deliver concrete assurances that the expanded line will get built. Singh also accused the federal government of threatening “punitive and divisive sanctions” against B.C. and First Nations, including cuts to health transfers. ‘Way forward’ “This is a way forward instead of threatening, instead of sanctioning, instead of using these menacing acts,” he said. “This is a way forward that actually unites instead of dividing.”In fact, federal cabinet ministers have not said whether they intend to impose sanctions. Kinder Morgan’s deadline announcement prompted the Trudeau government to hold an emergency cabinet meeting in Ottawa Monday. Ministers emerged from that meeting yesterday offering no concrete solutions to the standoff. Finance Minister Bill Morneau is scheduled to meet with Premier Notley later today. Speaking after an event in Toronto promoting student internships this morning, Morneau said the Liberal government has reinforced its “resolute determination” to get the pipeline built and repeated that all options are on the table. ‘All means under federal control’ The government is prepared to use “all means under federal control,” he said. He would not say if he’s considering scaling back transfer payments to persuade B.C. to let the project proceed.“I’m not going to publicly negotiate with any one of the parties,” Morneau said. “What I can tell you is public threats are not helpful.”He did suggest buying a federal stake in the pipeline is a possibility. “We want to make sure this pipeline goes forward. We want to make sure it goes forward on the basis that gets us the advantages that we’re seeking as soon as possible,” he said. “That will include us considering financial options that might help that to happen.”