OTTAWA -- Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole underlined the need to bolster Canada’s natural resources sector with Quebec Premier Francois Legault in his first face-to-face meeting with a provincial leader.
O’Toole said while he acknowledges the Energy East pipeline is "not on the table" his priority as prime minister would be to ensure pipeline projects in the West continue to ignite Canada’s economy as a whole.
"There are projects that will help us get a better price for Canadian resources, this is a resource that is important to our national interest. We better get the best world price we can as we’re recovering. So we had a good, frank discussion," said O’Toole on Monday in a press conference with reporters in Montreal.
Since Alberta Premier Jason Kenney’s win in 2019, he has called on the Quebec premier to consider the construction of a cross-Canada pipeline that would travel through the province to get more oil to market.
Legault has been quick to reject those calls, suggesting that there is no "social acceptability" for it.
O’Toole said he also spoke with Legault about what he termed Canada’s "national unity crisis" and the need for a federal government that respects provincial autonomy and legislative jurisdiction.
As it relates to a rejig of equalization payments – something Kenney has long been advocating for, much to the dismay of Legault – O’Toole said that issue didn’t specifically come up but the two discussed the fiscal stability program and how it could be adjusted for fluctuating resource prices.
"The fact that the premier is already speaking with his counterparts on that shows that he wants to be partners -- and I think that’s what all provincial premiers want, is to find a partner in Ottawa and that will be my approach, as I said, collaboration not confrontation," he said.
Tom Mulcair, a CTV News political analyst and former NDP leader, told CTV News Channel on Monday that O’Toole’s decision to hold his first meeting with the Quebec premier was the right call.
"O’Toole is clearly well-advised and a smooth operator himself and don’t forget, outside of the greater Montreal area, that’s where Francois Legault got his majority. That’s where the Conservatives hope to make some gains," he said.
O’Toole said it’s an alliance he hopes will continue if he becomes prime minister.
"It’s important for me that my first meeting was here with the premier of Quebec," he said. "We’ve got a great caucus from Quebec right now, I want to double or triple that caucus so we’re going to work very hard to earn the trust of Quebecers."
