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Resource lobby groups look forward to collaborative policy development with Prime Minister-designate

Justin Trudeau, Canada's prime minister-elect and leader of the Liberal Party of Canada.

Justin Trudeau, Canada's prime minister-elect and leader of the Liberal Party of Canada.

Photo by Bloomberg

20th October 2015

By: Henry Lazenby

Creamer Media Deputy Editor: North America

  

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TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Canada’s resource lobby groups have welcomed Canada’s new Prime Minister-designate Justin Trudeau, saying they are optimistic about collaborating with the new Liberal government to further advance resource policy reforms to the benefit of the Canadian economy.

The Liberal leader on Tuesday afternoon announced that he would appoint the new Cabinet on November 4.

The Mining Association of Canada (MAC) congratulated Trudeau and his Liberal Party on their election victory, noting that it looked forward to working with the new government to maintain and grow responsible mining development in Canada.

“We congratulate Prime Minister-elect Trudeau and all newly-elected Members of Parliament following yesterday’s federal election. We welcome the opportunities the new government will bring to ensure that the mining industry continues to benefit communities across the country, meet expectations of Canadians with respect to the environment and social performance, and maintain its role as a key contributor to Canada’s economy, both domestically and internationally,” MAC president and CEO Pierre Gratton stated on Tuesday.

The Liberal election platform included policies and commitments of significant interest to the Canadian mining industry. These included investments in innovation, infrastructure, education and skills training, notably for Aboriginal Canadians, a critical partner of Canada’s mining sector.

The new government also committed to reviewing the regulatory regime for resource projects. While federal government oversight of the mining sector was robust and unchanged by recent federal reforms, the MAC pointed out that opportunities existed to improve efficiencies and federal-provincial coordination.

“We were pleased to see that the Liberal Party has recognised the importance of responsible development of our natural resources to Canada’s current and future prosperity. We are committed to working collaboratively with government, Aboriginal communities and other stakeholders on any new policies relevant to our sector,” Gratton stated, thanking outgoing MPs for their support for the Canadian mining industry over the previous decade.

EXPLORATION AND DEVELOPMENT
The Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) echoed the MAC’s sentiments when it told Mining Weekly Online that it looked forward to working with the Liberal government on issues of job and wealth creation in rural, remote and urban Canada. The PDAC was also keen on advancing Liberal commitments regarding skills training, responsible resource development and infrastructure investment that could contribute to the continued strength of the sector to ensure Canada continued to be a world leader in mineral exploration and development.  

PDAC president Rod Thomas said there were several elements of the Liberal platform that were of interest to the mineral exploration and development industry. In particular, the PDAC was eager to work with the government on the proposed Canada Infrastructure Bank and the role it might play in supporting development of infrastructure in Canada’s northern and remote regions.

“The infrastructure deficit in these regions creates major obstacles to exploring and operating in these regions. Strategic infrastructure investments are necessary for mineral development in these regions and [to realise] the associated economic benefits [of] development,” Thomas emphasised.

He also pointed out that the Mineral Exploration Tax Credit (METC) was a critical policy tool that had helped Canada become a world leader in mineral exploration investment. A strong mineral exploration sector was necessary to support the Canadian minerals industry, which had contributed about C$54-billion to the country's gross domestic product and employed more than 380 000 workers across Canada.

“The Liberal Party has been supportive of flow-through financing and understands the need for greater certainty in financing given project timelines. We are confident that the Liberal government understands the unique needs of the mineral exploration sector to compete on the global stage and the important role the METC plays in maintaining Canada’s competitive advantage.

As the prolonged downturn in exploration financing persists, we will work with the Liberal Party on enhancements to the METC to return liquidity to the sector, Thomas stated.

The PDAC also encouraged the new government to support the establishment of the Cooperative Capital Markets Regulatory System, which the association saw as an instrumental step in helping its members succeed in financing their exploration activities.

“The cooperative system seeks to create a harmonised regulatory system for our industry across Canada that is efficient and will help contribute to economic growth. The current capital markets regime is fragmented, inefficient and costly. The establishment of a cooperative system provides an opportunity to implement important reforms that will facilitate cost-effective capital-raising for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, including junior mining companies,” Thomas said.

PETROLEUM
Trudeau’s platform had called for a price to be set on carbon emissions linked to climate change, while the Liberals had also shown diminished enthusiasm to win US support for TransCanada’s Keystone XL pipeline than the previous Conservative government.

Trudeau had previously stated that he would consider supporting the Keystone project, which would provide a critical link between Canada’s Alberta oilpatch and the US Gulf Coast refineries, reducing the discount Canadian producers received to the West Texas Intermediate oil price. The Liberal government was also perceived as likely to support the Energy East pipeline to New Brunswick and the expansion of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline to Vancouver. One pipeline Trudeau had expressed opposition to was the Northern Gateway pipeline, which he believed would threaten the pristine British Columbia coast.

The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers expressed its commitment to work constructively with the Liberal government to advance initiatives that were important for the petroleum industry and Canadians.

These included enhanced market access “by all means in all directions”; maintaining a timely, efficient regulatory and environmental review processes; engaging with aboriginal communities on industry-wide issues and balanced and realistic solutions to address climate change.

“The oil and natural gas sector is crucial to the economic health of our country as it creates jobs, provides significant government revenues and helps create prosperity for all Canadians,” president and CEO Tim McMillan noted in a statement.

Edited by Tracy Hancock
Creamer Media Contributing Editor

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