Léger: Broad Support for Pipeline to B.C. Coast

Despite fears of backlash, stronger-than-expected support in B.C. and Quebec challenges assumptions about pipelines' political risks for the Liberals.

Since the announcement of the Canada–Alberta MOU, the question of whether the federal Liberals could—or will—pay a political price for such an agreement has been central to many conversations about electoral politics. After all, the Liberals won a record 20 seats in British Columbia last April, most of them in Metro Vancouver and the Lower Mainland. Without these gains—many taken from the NDP—the Liberal government would find itself in a far more precarious position today.

Yet polling since the MOU announcement suggests we may need to revisit some preconceived notions about how Canadians view pipeline projects and fossil-fuel development. Scientific polling paints a picture that is far more favourable than the “conventional wisdom” would suggest—not just in B.C., but from coast to coast (including Quebec).

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