Canadians are cool to Carney government forcing through 'national interest' projects unilaterally: poll

Most Canadians support Prime Minister Mark Carney’s new legislation to fast-track infrastructure projects deemed in the “national interest,” according to a new poll, but the federal government has a long way to go if it wants to convince voters that it should be able to unilaterally approve such big projects without buy-in from other groups. The Leger poll released Friday found that 56 per cent of respondents nationally view the One Canadian Economy Act, the Carney government’s signature piece of legislation to date, as a positive step, compared to 25 per cent who said it’s a bad idea. Support was strongest in B.C., the Atlantic provinces, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, at around two-thirds, while just over half supported the new legislation in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta. The legislation, which became law last month , has been criticized for giving Ottawa too much power and discretion because it allows the federal cabinet to fast-track major infrastructure projects by bypassing the usual environmental and approval processes. A plurality of respondents (42 per cent) to the Leger poll said that such projects should require the support of federal and provincial governments as well as impacted First Nations. Only eight per cent of respondents said that the federal government’s support alone should be enough, while 27 per cent said projects should go ahead if the federal and affected provincial governments are in favour. Ten per cent said the decision belonged to Ottawa and affected Indigenous governments. Andrew Enns, Leger’s executive vice-president, said the public seems to be sending Ottawa a two-track message. “In theory, it gives the federal government strong latitude to move forward on projects of national interest,” he said. “But for the public, it’s going to be a collaborative process.” Since the legislation became law late last month, the federal government has tried to work behind the scenes to convince Indigenous leaders, provinces and others that their concerns won’t be steamrolled in the push to get big projects built. Carney announced late last month that the government will host a series of summits with Indigenous leaders, beginning July 17 with First Nations. Summits with Inuit and Metis leaders will soon follow. Some provinces, notably Quebec and British Columbia, have also pushed back on Ottawa’s new rights to fast-track pipelines in particular , while environmental groups and First Nations have called for a more inclusive process for big projects than what they believe is in the works. The poll also found that the Carney government’s post-election honeymoon shows no signs of ending yet. After winning the popular vote in the April federal election by 2.5 percentage points, the Liberals now enjoy a 13-percentage-point lead (48 per cent versus 35 per cent) over the second-place Conservatives among decided voters. More than half of all respondents (58 per cent) also said they approve of Carney’s performance so far. The poll sampled 1,546 adult Canadians between July 4-6. A probability sample of this size yields a margin of error no greater than plus or minus 2.49 per cent 19 times out of 20. National Post stuck@postmedia.com

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