Statement by the Central Executive Committee, Communist Party of Canada, Dec. 15, 2007

By resisting progress towards desperately‑needed world action against the impact of catastrophic climate change, the Harper Conservatives are rapidly giving Canada a global reputation as a country governed by eco‑criminals. It is no exaggeration to state that by attempting to sabotage the United Nations Climate Change Conference (held in Bali from Dec. 3 to 14), PM Harper and Environment Minister John Baird were committing a grave crime against humanity. Fortunately, a massive outpouring of anger by Canadians and the international community compelled Baird to withdraw formal objections to the conference call for 25 to 40 per cent cuts in greenhouse‑gas (GHG) emissions by wealthy countries by the end of the next decade.

     Most of the 190 countries represented at the Bali Summit came to hammer out an agreement on stopping catastrophic climate change. But instead of cooperating in this historic task, the Harper Tories joined the United States, Japan, Saudi Arabia and a handful of other countries in efforts to prevent agreement on meaningful emission reductions. Canada even received the global "fossil" award as one of the worst countries in the world on climate change.

     Despite their minority position in Parliament, and with total contempt for the views of Canadians and the rest of the world, the Harper Tories respond only to the demands of the big oil monopolies and US imperialism. Harper's position has been that Canada will not accept any meaningful targets for reducing GHG emissions unless all developed and developing countries are on board. This hypocrisy is simply a ruse to evade Canada's responsibilities by blaming the problem on others. The UN Development Program recently described Canada as an "extreme case" of "all talk and no action," noting that Canadians leave the second largest "carbon footprint" per capita in the world after the United States. And at the latest Commonwealth meeting in Uganda, Stephen Harper blocked a draft agreement calling for developed countries to meet greenhouse gas targets.

     While emissions are growing rapidly in some developing countries, developed capitalist countries have caused the problem over the past two centuries, and have benefited most from GHG emissions. By supporting the all‑out expansion of the Alberta oil sands and the export of this vast energy resource to the U.S., the Harper government is locking Canada into the U.S. war machine. Their policies mean vast profits for the big oil, but devastating consequences for the environment and working people.

     The Harper government's spin on climate change at the Bali talks continues its ludicrous claim at the recent APEC meeting in Australia, that Canada is a "world leader" on this issue. The truth is that the Tory "strategy" of increased energy intensity (using less energy per unit of gross domestic product as GDP grows) simply will not reduce GHG emissions.

     Since the APEC Summit, Australian PM John Howard ‑ one of Bush's few allies ‑ has been defeated by voters angry about his lies and failure to act on climate change.

     Stephen Harper must also be defeated! The Communist Party of Canada will continue to help mobilize popular resistance to the Conservatives and their anti‑environmental, big business agenda. We urge the Parliamentary opposition parties to defeat Harper now, so that his "big oil" government can be removed from office by the voters as soon as possible.