Toronto Star: New climate spin master

[marmar]

Another day, another minister of the environment -- the fifth in five years for Prime Minister Stephen Harper. His latest choice for the embattled portfolio, Peter Kent, is unlikely to have any more impact than his predecessors.

Indeed, Harper made it clear in the press conference following his Tuesday mini-shuffle that he wants his government to “stay the course.” In the case of the environment, that course has been to do the minimum possible while spinning to the max, especially on the climate change file.

Harper himself was spinning madly at the post-shuffle press conference. Asked whether Canada would be following the lead of the United States with stricter regulations on greenhouse gas emissions, he replied: “I notice the Obama administration is now talking about moving toward tougher standards on the electricity sector. In that particular case, they have a long way to go to catch up to us.”

Strictly speaking, that’s true, when it comes to electricity. That’s because about half of the American power supply comes from coal-fired plants, whereas more than half of ours comes from emission-free sources like hydro and nuclear. ..........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/916140--peter-kent-new-climate-spin-master