Toronto | Traditional…

Toronto | Traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat – Bill 5 would, if passed, deal a body blow to the environment and hopes for energy sovereignty in Ontario. It reads like an attempt to outdo even the most regressive policies and the most transparently false political pretexts of the Trump Administration. This Bill represents a direct attack on species at risk, clean and healthy communities, clean energy and the rights of Indigenous peoples.

These are exactly the values Premier Ford claimed he would protect when seeking re-election. Ontarians deserve better than broken promises and policies that threaten our environment, our communities and our future.

Statement by Phil Pothen, Ontario Environment program manager and Alienor Rougeot, Climate and Energy senior program manager, Environmental Defence Canada.

We have a reputation in Ontario for the beauty and bounty of our nature, and we have an obligation to care for it. To even consider proposing a bill of this depravity is more akin to Trump than Pierre, and would be devastating to Ontario and our future. Because our future does not lie in continuing to make the rich richer while the rest of humanity fall to the wayside. Our future lies in preserving and protecting our province and country, building a sustainable world in which our children can thrive. What is the point of having a billion dollars when the world ceases to be habitable? Elon still hasn’t taken us to Mars.