It’s unacceptable B.C. has been cut out of pipeline talks, Premier Eby tells Mark Carney

For a project he says 'doesn't actually exist,' there was a lot British Columbia Premier David Eby had to say about a potential pipeline from Alberta to B.C.'s northern coast.

For a project he says “doesn’t actually exist,” there was a lot British Columbia Premier David Eby had to say about a potential pipeline from Alberta to B.C.’s northern coast, in a phone call with Prime Minister Mark Carney on Monday.

There should be a ban on public spending on the project, he said. Or a cap. Or, if it goes ahead with taxpayer money, then B.C. should also get a “$50-billion federally funded project.”

Eby also said he told Carney “how unacceptable” it was for Alberta and Saskatchewan to talk with the federal government about the proposal without input from his province.

“This is not something that would happen to Quebec,” Eby said Monday at an unrelated news conference in Victoria.

The federal government and Alberta are said to be finalizing a memorandum of understanding that could include a pipeline, along with exceptions to the ban of tankers off the B.C. coast.

Eby declined to say what steps his government would take to stop such a pipeline, which he has said could threaten thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in “real projects” that depend on a “fragile consensus” with First Nations.

But he said he expects B.C. to fully participate in the conversations, as well as Coastal First Nations, whose consent and support is required.

“We don’t have to agree, but it is absolutely crucial that the perspective, knowledge and relationships of British Columbia are leveraged at that table to make sure that we reach the best conclusion for the people of Canada possible.”