Three NDP MPs sign petition criticizing B.C.’s NDP government over pipeline protests

OTTAWA — Three federal New Democrat MPs have signed a petition denouncing British Columbia’s NDP government for its handling of an Indigenous protest at a pipeline work site and voicing “distress” at the federal NDP’s response.

The B.C. RCMP arrested several people, including a photojournalist and a documentary filmmaker, last month when officers moved to enforce an injunction barring protesters from blocking an access road used by Coastal GasLink workers.

The office of B.C. Premier John Horgan said in a statement that “elected officials in B.C. do not direct police operations.”

Lori Idlout, the Nunavut MP and party spokesperson on Crown-Indigenous relations, joined MPs Matthew Green and Leah Gazan, in signing the petition. 

The NDP MPs joined 15 former federal candidates and 1,000 NDP activists saying they are “angered” by actions toward Indigenous protesters who oppose the pipeline in their traditional territories in northern B.C.

Federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh stopped short of criticizing Horgan’s government at a news conference in Ottawa today but he expressed concern about the RCMP arrests, saying the NDP supported Indigenous communities. 

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The petition, signed by a number of local NDP riding associations, says many young NDP activists are “tearing up” their party memberships over the issue. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 8, 2021.

The Canadian Press