EventAction
Commons defeats Conservative motion backing a West Coast pipeline in the Canada–Alberta MOU's wording; only Conservatives vote yes
On 9 December 2025 the House of Commons defeated a Conservative opposition motion on pipeline construction, moved by Pierre Poilievre. The motion asked the House to take note of the Canada–Alberta memorandum of understanding of 27 November 2025 and to support one or more pipelines exporting at least one million barrels a day of low-emission Alberta bitumen from a deep-water port on the British Columbia coast to Asian markets, "including through an appropriate adjustment to the Oil Tanker Moratorium Act, while respecting the duty to consult Indigenous peoples." A Conservative amendment would have added carbon capture and storage, Indigenous participation through consultation and ownership, and trilateral talks with British Columbia. According to the House of Commons vote records (votes 54 and 55), the amendment and the motion were each defeated 138 to 196, with 2 paired. All the yes votes were Conservative; Liberal, Bloc Québécois and NDP MPs and Elizabeth May voted no. In question period, Poilievre said: "if he votes against the motion, he's voting against the pipeline to the Pacific." Energy Minister Tim Hodgson called the motion "a cheap political stunt".
- Date
- Kind
- Legislation
- Where
- Canada
- Evidence
- Action: Something was done: a law switched on, a tariff imposed, money committed. How evidence is weighed
- Who
- Pierre Poilievre (spoke); Conservative Party of Canada (acted); Bloc Québécois (subject); House of Commons of Canada (subject)
Sources
- Global News, “Liberals defeat Poilievre pipeline motion, insist they back future project” (external site), . source record
- openparliament.ca, “House of Commons vote 45-1 #54 (amendment to Conservative West Coast pipeline motion)” (external site), . source record
- openparliament.ca, “House of Commons vote 45-1 #55 (Conservative West Coast pipeline motion)” (external site), . source record
- House of Commons of Canada, “Vote No. 55: Opposition Motion (Pipeline construction)” (external site), . source record
- House of Commons of Canada, “Vote No. 54: Opposition Motion (Pipeline construction) (amendment)” (external site), . source record
Laws and agreements
- Canada–Alberta Memorandum of Understanding on energy collaboration (Canada–Alberta MOU (2025-11-27))
Projects
Claims that rest on this event
- Cross-party support is for the projects, not the fast-track instruments: BC's Conservatives voted against both BC fast-track laws even though they promise more building.
Federal Conservatives back the project itself.
- The weak point for durability is public money, not the permitting law. The Conservatives attack state capital (Trans Mountain helping finance the West Coast pipeline, the Canada Strong Fund, the Pathways deal with Alberta) as corporate welfare. So privately financed projects that send resources south should survive any government, while publicly financed projects to sell elsewhere are exposed after the 2029 election.
Conservatives voted to back the West Coast pipeline.
How it bears on the outcome
| Explanation | Fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| O0 No meaningful speed-up | Neutral weak | A defeated opposition motion, which the government called a stunt while saying it backs a future project, does not tell the outcome readings apart. |
| O1 Faster, but the extra output goes mostly elsewhere | Neutral weak | A defeated opposition motion, which the government called a stunt while saying it backs a future project, does not tell the outcome readings apart. |
| O2 Faster, and more volume reaches the US (this level or higher) | Neutral weak | A defeated opposition motion, which the government called a stunt while saying it backs a future project, does not tell the outcome readings apart. |
| O3 Locked-in preferential terms for the US | Neutral weak | A defeated opposition motion, which the government called a stunt while saying it backs a future project, does not tell the outcome readings apart. |