Senators make way back to Ottawa with much to review following two days in the Northwest

A large crowd greeted Senators throughout the day on Tuesday
as participants in the Senate Committee Hearings on the proposed Oil Ban
on the North Coast provided their testimony to the Upper Chamber members
(photo from MP Nathan Cullen's Twitter Feed)

The travelling party of the Senate of Canada's Transportation and Communications Committee have taken their leave of the Northwest following two days of testimony this week, morning and afternoon sessions in Prince Rupert and Terrace which provided for a range of views on the fate of legislation from the House of Commons related to an oil tanker ban on the North Coast.

In Prince Rupert the group heard from a number of First Nations leaders, community members, representatives of industry and elected officials, all providing short presentations to the Senators as they compiled their notes and observations on the commentary found in the region.

Among those who spoke during the Prince Rupert session of Tuesday,  were Mayor Lee Brain, MP Nathan Cullen, MLA Jennifer Rice and BC environment Minister George Heyman.

For whatever reason, unlike past sessions in Ottawa, the Senate chose not to provide an audio or video feed of their tour of the Northwest.

So much of the testimony to the committee will be released through transcripts at a later date, however some of the participants of the Prince Rupert session have posted their contributions to their respective information streams.

The Minister of Environment's themes were relayed through a statement on the BC Government News website, with Minister George Heyman making note of the unique nature of the North Coast, while also reinforcing the provincial government's dedication towards reconciliation  with Indigenous communities.

“British Columbia’s northern coast is a unique, ecologically rich marine environment valued internationally and even more so by the communities whose histories and futures are tied to its health and protection. “Our government has been very clear we are committed to protecting our environment, the economy and our coast from the devastating impact a heavy oil spill would have. British Columbians expect nothing less. We oppose the expansion of the movement of heavy oil through our coastal waters and we have been consistent in this position.

B.C. is committed to true reconciliation with Indigenous peoples and, in particular, the right of Indigenous peoples to pursue development in keeping with their own needs and aspirations. This means that an informed and meaningful opportunity for dialogue with Indigenous groups whose rights may be impacted is required."

The full statement can be reviewed here.

North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice included her comments for the Senate committee as part of her social media stream, making note of how Bill C-48 is an essential act towards protection of the North Coast from oil tanker traffic.




So far, neither Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen who has been the strongest advocate for the tanker ban on the North Coast, or Prince Rupert Mayor Lee Brain have provided for a text of their comments to the Senate Committee.

Much of Mr. Cullen's take on the Senate hearings put the focus on the fact that the bill had been approved by 67% of the elected representatives in the House of Commons and how the time for Senate approval of the Bill was at hand.

The Senators session in Terrace heard from a range of presentations with very differing opinions, though the testimony of Wednesday in Terrace consisted of much more of the way of support of creating some kind of allowance for oil tanker shipments on the North Coast than that of the day before in Prince Rupert.

Once they catch up with their transcripts and accounts of the Northwest sessions the results will be provided to the Senate website here.

You can follow the fate of Bill C-48 from the Senate Committee website.

Some of the local coverage of the Senate Committee hearings in the Northwest can be found below:

First Nations divided on impacts of tanker ban at Northern BC Senate hearings
Northwest BC leaders divided over oil tanker ban
Water is life for coastal communities, says MLA Jennifer Rice in Senate Committee testimony
Terrace Tanker Hearing (video)
Oil Tanker Ban in Prince Rupert
Representatives from Canadian Senate hear feedback concerning proposed tanker ban oat BC's northern coast

For more items of interest on the Federal political scene see our House of Commons archive page, for a wider overview of Federal politics see our political  D'Arcy McGee archive here.

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