Danielle Smith calls on 'reasonable' ministers to counter Guilbeault's influence in cabinet

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says the fact that Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault continues to spearhead the federal government's climate agenda means the ministers around him will have to work harder to achieve a "balanced approach."

"The fact that we have five cabinet ministers that we're dealing with — four of them are reasonable, one of them is not," Smith told host Catherine Cullen in an interview on CBC's The House airing Saturday.

"I'm hoping that the four reasonable ones are able to carry the day because we can have a deal with the federal government that is good for industry, good for the environment, good for consumers, good for the planet, good for our trade partners.

"And it's a matter of making sure Guilbeault is not the one who carries the day because he's the one, unfortunately, who is sending mixed messages and it's not helpful."

Guilbeault is one of a handful of ministers who retained their positions after a massive cabinet shuffle earlier this week. Smith and some other provincial leaders have clashed repeatedly with Guilbeault over federal climate policy.

Smith said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's decision to retain Guilbeault "tells me that his colleagues are going to have to do a lot more to advocate for a balanced approach at the table. He shouldn't be the only one out there deciding policy."

For his part, Guilbeault has sought a more conciliatory tone in his relationship with Smith.

"I wouldn't say things are great," he told The House last month. "I'm saying we have our differences, but we have also the capacity to work them out."

In a statement sent to CBC News on Friday, Guilbeault's office said he remains committed to close cooperation with the provinces. The statement said the minister visited Alberta recently and he and the provincial government worked effectively to create regulations on heavy emitters and carbon capture systems.

"Putting politics aside, we will keep coming to the table in the spirit of collaboration to improve the lives of Albertans," said the statement.

The federal government and Alberta also have agreed to set up a working group on energy issues.

Smith's comments come after weeks of back-and-forth over the federal government's approach to climate change policy. The federal government recently unveiled its plan to end "inefficient" fossil fuel subsidies and is working on regulations to set an emissions cap on the oil and gas sector — something Smith calls a de facto production cap.

Ontario's Environment Minister David Piccini also criticized Guilbeault for travelling abroad to represent Canada at a meeting of G20 environment ministers (where he sought an agreement on ending unabated fossil fuel projects), instead of remaining in Canada to meet with provincial ministers.

While Guilbeault has faced opposition at home over the government's climate change agenda, he's also run into resistance abroad. G20 environment ministers meeting in India recently were unable to reach a deal to put an end to unabated fossil fuel projects.