IN THE HOUSE – ‘Why does PM think bonuses for oil executives acceptable?’

Debate during Question Period on Monday, June 4, 2018 between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Opposition Leader Andrew Scheer on bonuses paid to Kinder Morgan executives:

Hon. Andrew Scheer (Leader of the Opposition, CPC):

Mr. Speaker, last week, because of another failure of the Prime Minister, Canadians involuntarily became shareholders in the Trans Mountain pipeline.

As if the initial expenditure of $4.5 billion was not enough, we now know that some of that money was used to give very generous bonuses of over $1 billion to Kinder Morgan executives.

Can the Prime Minister tell us whether he knew that Canadians’ money was going to be used like that? Why does he think that is acceptable?

Right Hon. Justin Trudeau (Prime Minister, Lib.):
Mr. Speaker, we are making investments to protect thousands of jobs in Alberta and across the country.

When I went to Fort McMurray to meet with energy sector workers, I told them that the government has their backs. From the beginning, this government has supported the thousands of energy sector workers across the country, and we will continue to work to protect Canadian jobs. We cannot comment on internal decisions that are part of private negotiations.

Hon. Andrew Scheer (Leader of the Opposition, CPC):
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has killed thousands of jobs in the energy sector by killing northern gateway and cancelling energy east. Last week, he announced that he is forcing Canadians to pay $4.5 billion for his failure to get Trans Mountain built. It is bad enough that the Prime Minister is sending taxpayers’ money to Texas to be invested in American projects, but now we learn that he is paying two executives over $3 million in bonuses. Why is it that every time the Prime Minister bails out a big company, executives get paid off?

Right Hon. Justin Trudeau (Prime Minister, Lib.):
Mr. Speaker, for 10 years, the Conservatives tried and failed to get our oil resources to markets other than the United States. They could not get it done. We have actually moved forward in securing a pipeline to new markets across the Pacific, something they were unable to do. Yes, I know it is a shock to the Conservatives, but public investment has often been part of developing our natural resources, going back decades. They, however, are trapped in their ideology and continue to play politics with thousands of good jobs for Alberta.

Source: Hansard.