April 13, 2016 - When Rachel Notley's NDP came to power last spring in Alberta, Gordon Laxer's book, After the Sands: Energy and Ecological Security for Canadians, on ecological renewal and Canadian petro-politics was already at the publisher. And so, he was given a week to do some major rewriting because he had not foreseen this political earthquake in the making.
[One 'translation' offered by Marv Gandall on the Socialist Project list: "We’re working on a vague climate change resolution which will preempt debate at the riding level, ensure that we’re not saddled with anything remotely resembling the Leap Manifesto, and align the party with the fossil fuel dependent NDP government in Alberta."]
One of the NDP's longest-serving MPs says the party can survive the controversial Leap Manifesto, and is already at work behind closed doors to bridge its recently very public divides.
April 14, 2016 - Well, the Leap is certainly in the news. Many articles have been filled with errors and misrepresentations, which isn't surprising. It makes perfect sense that right-leaning publications and competing political parties would seek to bury the NDP at a time when it is engaged in a process of open soul-searching. We should expect more, however, from commentators on the left.
Apr. 11, 2016 - B.C. NDP Leader John Horgan wants to form a common front with the Alberta NDP government in opposition to the federal party’s proposed policy manifesto aiming to wean Canada off fossil fuels by 2050.
Mr. Horgan is currently under fire from labour leaders for his opposition to two major energy projects in B.C. on environmental grounds.
The head of Via Rail says the Crown corporation has investors in place and is ready to start construction in early 2017 on a plan that would dramatically improve service in the Montreal-Ottawa-Toronto corridor.
That silly Leap Manifesto -- giving itself away right in the subtitle, which calls for "a Canada based on caring for the Earth and one another." No wonder it provoked fury and outrage.
Canada's big banks are cutting credit lines of struggling energy companies, heaping more financial strain on an industry battered by the collapse in oil prices.
Bank of Nova Scotia, Royal Bank of Canada and National Bank of Canada are among those reducing credit lines as the lenders complete their semi-annual review of borrowing limits in the hard-hit energy sector.
