Canada's energy policy, and its increasingly fact-free discourse, demands a rethink
Written by: Mac Van Wielingen The Globe and Mail Mac Van Wielingen is the Calgary-based founding partner of ARC Financial, the largest energy-focused private-equity firm in Canada, and the founder and chair of Viewpoint Group. I am a committed, first-generation Canadian. I care deeply for this country that gave my parents a new start after Canada liberated the Netherlands in the Second World War. And, I should say, I accept the science of climate change; I believe we need solution-focused change on both the production and consumption of fossil fuels. But I am deeply concerned about the future of the country, amid the alarming polarization in the discourse on energy development. This debate – more specifically, the one around recent legislative initiatives such as Bill C-48 and Bill C-69 – is clear evidence that we’ve moved away from certain basic facts and this country’s energy policy needs a rethink. Contrary to what many believe, oil demand has not ...