Oil, gas firms step up lobbying effort aimed at Tory government
Last Updated: Monday, August 25, 2008 | 12:35 PM ET
The Canadian Press
The Canadian corporate giants dominating Alberta oilsands extraction and refining lobbied the federal government intensively this summer, federal records show.
The campaign began shortly after Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion unveiled his plan for $15 billion worth of new taxes on carbon emissions and continued through July.
Oil and gas lobbyists held several meetings with Industry Minister Jim Prentice and Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn, one meeting with Environment Minister John Baird, and a string of meetings with top government officials including aides to Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
The Liberal tax plan, feared in Western Canada, was likely discussed, an industry source said.
'That's not lobbying, that's a blitzkrieg. It's easy to see who's got the ear of this government.'—Pat Martin, NDP MP
Records show the companies that engaged in the lobbying were Shell Canada, Petro-Canada, Suncor, Imperial Oil, Chevron Canada, Encana Corp., ConocoPhillips and Nexen Inc.
Three major industry organizations — the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), another group representing small producers and explorers, and a third representing firms that market and distribute petroleum products — also took part in the campaign.
Only seven environmental groups and associations reported lobbying activity, primarily with ministerial assistants and senior bureaucrats.
Officials speaking on behalf of several of the oil companies and petroleum organizations declined to disclose details of the talks. One even objected to use of the word "lobbying" to describe the meetings.
New monitoring regime requires reports of meetings
All registered consultant lobbyists, as well as companies and organizations that use in-house lobbyists to put their case to the federal government, must file monthly reports of meetings with designated public office holders.
July was the first month the new monitoring regime introduced by the Conservative government took effect. The public reports require only one-word descriptions of the issues being discussed.
Pierre Alvarez, president of CAPP, said the meeting his organization reported with Prentice and Lunn was a general overview of the industry, including supply forecasts, that took place in the company of the U.S. ambassador to Canada, David Wilkins.
Industry meetings are common, says EnCana
A spokeswoman for Suncor Energy Ltd., one of the oldest and largest participants in the oilsands, said she was not given specific details to release by company officials.
"When we're speaking with the government, we're speaking about everything from environmental issue that affect our business to energy supply within Canada and abroad, as well as capital and jobs and economic impact," said Shawn Davis, media relations officer for Suncor.
"When you're asking did we speak about the oilsands, I think yes, we would definitely have been speaking about the oilsands and our business," she said.
A spokesman for EnCana Corp., also was unable to disclose details.
"These kinds of meetings and exchanges happen all the time," said media director Alan Boras.
New reporting law worthwhile: NDP
A spokesman for Baird, who met a lobbyist with only one of the firms, Shell Canada, confirmed there was discussion of proposed regulations to enforce greenhouse gas emission limits under the Conservatives' so-called Turning the Corner plan.
"The agenda included domestic and international climate change policy, low-carbon fuels and biofuels," Chris Day, Baird's press secretary, said in an e-mail.
"The minister took their views into consideration. The government is proceeding with its Turning the Corner plan."
The Tory plan has been criticized by environmentalists and the opposition parties, in part because its greenhouse gas reduction targets are far short of those called for in the 1997 Kyoto Accord. As well, critics say the industry will be able to avoid reductions by contributing to a so-called Green Technology Fund.
Despite the limited amount of information available in the lobbying files, NDP MP Pat Martin says the new reporting law is worthwhile because it reveals the extent of contacts between the oil industry and government on an issue that will likely be central in the next election.
"That's not lobbying, that's a blitzkrieg," said Martin. "It's easy to see who's got the ear of this government."
