Minister of Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson participates in a fireside discussion in Ottawa, on Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2023. Wilkinson says legislation to lay out the government's plan to protect jobs during the clean-energy transition is still months away. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
OTTAWA – Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson says legislation to oversee the government’s plan to protect jobs during the clean-energy transition is still months away.
The minister had indicated recently that the long-promised “just transition” legislation could be tabled early this year.
That prospect prompted outcry in Alberta, where the energy transition will have the biggest impact and provincial politicians are headed for a tightly contested election this spring.
Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley asked the federal government to at least delay the bill until after the election.
Wilkinson says the province’s politics have no bearing on the timeline for the bill, but it likely won’t be tabled until after the Alberta election.
He says the department has to first publish an “action plan” guided by consultations that have been ongoing for months, and the legislation to govern how that plan is implemented will follow much later.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 1, 2023.
