Oilsands closure not an option for NDP
By FRANK LANDRY, Legislature Bureau
Last Updated: October 5, 2010
Alberta’s NDP does not want to shut down the oilsands, says Leader Brian Mason.
It’s a point Mason said he wants to drive home as he tours the province, talking up the party’s policies.
“It’s part of correcting this perception that (Premier) Ed Stelmach and the Conservative government have been trying to spread about where we stand,” said Mason, in Fort McMurray on Tuesday, outlining his party’s stance on jobs and the oilsands.
“We’re making it clear we are not supportive of shutting down the oilsands in any way.
In a highly publicized exchange last year in the legislature, Stelmach accused the New Democrats of wanting to shutter the oilsands.
Mason responded by calling it a lie, after which the NDP leader was asked five times by the Speaker of the House to apologize, before withdrawing the remark.
Using language in the House such as “lying” or “liar” is considered unparliamentary.
Mason said the province must focus more on upgrading bitumen in Alberta rather than in the U.S., which he said would create more jobs locally. Tens of thousands of jobs could be at stake, he said.
Mason also said the oilsands must be developed in a more environmentally responsible and sustainable way.
“We’ve said for a long time that the greatest threat in the long run to our prosperity and to the industry itself is the black eye we have internationally,” he said.
Mason said that was highlighted last week by movie maker James Cameron’s three-day visit to Alberta.
“Cleaning up the oilsands is our objective, not shutting them down,” Mason said.
The NDP leader said the province has to make more investments in green technology, like wind power, in the long run.
http://www.edmontonsun.com/news/alberta/2010/10/05/15594966.html
