Elizabeth May says Greens wouldn’t prop up minority government that supports pipelines

MONTREAL — On the eve of a major climate march in Montreal, the Green party warned that it would never support a minority government without a credible and verifiable environmental plan.

That includes any party that promotes fossil fuel projects such as the expansion of the Trans Mountain oil pipeline, party leader Elizabeth May told a news conference in Montreal Thursday.

May’s comments come as several polls suggest that the Liberals and Conservatives are neck-and-neck in voting intentions, which could yield a minority government.

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Both front-running parties support expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline to the West Coast.

May said she would be prepared to defeat a minority government on its first speech from the throne, even if it meant plunging the country into another election.

She said her party could “never accept” a government that does not show a profound commitment to the targets contained in the October 2018 report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change aimed at limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

“On the question of a minority government, (it would be) a very short minority government without a commitment to act immediately,” she said.

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She did not want to speculate on the approach she would take if she were asked for her support in exchange for a key post in a coalition government, calling the question hypothetical.

May also discussed the central role Quebec could play in a “national electrical network” that is part of the Greens’ proposal to reduce the country’s greenhouse gas emissions by 60 per cent by 2030.