MPs from four of the five federal parties have united in supporting a bill that would force the hand of Canada’s financial system to participate in the fight against climate change. At a press conference in support of the bill on Thursday, the absence of a Conservative MP did not go unnoticed.
Five Canadian banks are among the 15 largest financiers of the fossil fuel industry in the world for the year 2022 and Bill S-243 would, in particular, impose on these banking institutions the obligation to develop action on climate change, to have greenhouse gas emissions targets and to submit progress reports to fight the climate crisis.
“We must ensure that capital is in line with the decarbonization of the economy” and “we must therefore modify the financial system”, indicated the liberal Ryan Turnbull.
The MP for Whitby, Ont., referred to the fires currently threatening communities in Alberta and cited a study by the Climate Institute of Canada (CCI) which indicates that the country’s economic growth could be reduced by $25 billion. $ per year due to the climate crisis and up to $100 billion per year by 2050.
Ryan Turnbull brought a motion to Senator Rosa Galvez’s Bill S-243, which calls on the government to use “all legislative and regulatory tools at its disposal to align Canada’s fiscal regime with the Paris Agreement.”
“It’s not just about aligning the financial system with our commitments, but it’s also about protecting the assets of Canadians who have invested in pension funds, who have pensions, all of this is at risk. if that transition doesn’t happen,” said NDP MP Taylor Bachrach, noting that Canadians’ assets in the fossil fuel industry will lose value as other countries transition to clean energy.
An opinion shared by Bloc Québécois Jean-Denis Garon, who declared during the press conference that “as long as Canada lags behind in these areas of growth [les énergies renouvelables]we will lose opportunities, and there will come a day when we will have to import these technologies, seek them elsewhere and be dependent on our commercial partners”.
RBC pointed out
The member for Mirabel added that “goodwill is not a public policy and when we let the private sector use goodwill, we manufacture free riders in terms of the climate and among these free riders, we find the banks Canadian companies, in the first place, the RBC”.
Green Party MP Elizabeth May also pointed the finger at RBC. “The Royal Bank of Canada is not only Canada’s worst climate enemy, but it also has the worst balance sheet in the world, it continues to shovel banknotes into the furnace of climate disaster,” she said. said.
The Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) was the largest funder of fossil fuel projects globally in 2022, according to data from the latest Banking on Climate Chaos study, released a month ago by a consortium environmental groups.
Royal Bank financial assistance to the fossil fuel sector reached US$42 billion last year, according to the study, up US$3 billion from 2021.
“Fill the holes in the sinking boat”
Invited to speak at the press conference, Julie Segal, of the Environmental Defense group, was delighted that representatives of four of the five political parties united behind Senator Galvez’s bill.
“Canada finally has a team of firefighters ready to tackle the biggest breach in Canadian climate policy,” the environmentalist said, referring to the lack of regulation on private capital.
She added that “when a boat sinks, plug the holes, not just count how many there are,” saying that’s what this bill has the potential to do.
Absence of curators
The absence of a Conservative MP was underlined by the elected officials present at the press conference.
In response to a reporter’s question, Elizabeth May argued that “every day in parliament, Tory MPs are rising up to decry the small steps the Liberal government is trying to put in place to reduce greenhouse gases” .
She also called on members of the Conservative Party of Canada to join MPs from other parties in fighting climate change.
“The elephant in the room when it comes to fighting climate change in Canada […] is that we live in a petro-state” and “it is at the center of the Conservatives’ political platform to remain a petro-state and to grow as a petro-state”, for his part mentioned the Bloc Québécois Jean- Denis Garon before adding that he hopes “that one day partisanship will be put aside to become a democracy worthy of the 21e century rather than a petro-monarchy”.
Poilievre intends to inquire about the bill
The Canadian Press asked the leader of the Conservative Party of Canada on Thursday morning if he supported the approach of Senator Galvez and members of other parties.
Pierre Poilievre replied that he was unaware of the content of Bill S-243.
“I don’t have this law in front of me, I’m ready to read the law and give you an answer on it. I need to find out about the specific law, ”said the Conservative leader after a press conference on another subject.
“My approach on climate change is technology not taxes, it’s to reduce the cost of carbon-free energy instead of increasing the price of traditional energy,” added the Conservative leader.
“We must provide more green electricity while reducing the cost of living for everyone, that’s common sense and that’s exactly what I’m going to bring as Prime Minister,” added Pierre. Poilievre.
The Bank of Canada and the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) recently published a report in which they analyze different scenarios to improve the ability of financial institutions to analyze the economic and financial risks to which they could be exposed due to climate change. .
All the scenarios analyzed show that “the transition will involve significant risks for certain economic sectors” and “that an erroneous assessment of the price of transition risks could expose financial institutions and investors to sudden and significant losses”.
According to the two institutions, delayed political action would amplify “the economic impact and the risks to financial stability”.
When the report was released, Bank of Canada Deputy Governor Toni Gravelle said that “the public and private sectors must work together to ensure that the economy and the financial system are fully prepared for the transition to a low-carbon economy”.
A bill must go through five stages in the Senate; the one presented by Senator Galvez is at second reading.