Opposition MPs Pissed At Not Joining Canada's Delegation At Bali Climate Conference

OTTAWA -- There'll be no room for opposition MPs in the Canadian government's inn at next month's crucial climate-change talks in Bali, Indonesia. Environment Minister John Baird's office confirmed yesterday that representatives from the three opposition parties would not be welcome as part of Canada's official delegation at the United Nations conference.

That's a departure from a long-held government tradition of bringing critics along to major international conferences. Opposition MPs participated in a major UN environmental conference in Nairobi last November, for example. This coming meeting will set the stage for a follow-up agreement to the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012 and does not include the developing world. Baird spokesman Garry Keller said in an e-mail that Mr. Baird "... is going to Indonesia to work for global action on climate change, and not fight partisan battles.

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The Liberals note that while leader Stéphane Dion was the environment minister, he brought Tory critic Bob Mills "to pretty much everything," and arranged for Mr. Mills to participate in some meetings with foreign ministers at which Mr. Dion wasn't present.

Liberal environment critic David McGuinty calls the move censorship. "I thought that I had a responsibility as the Official Opposition critic for the environment, who ran to get elected to work in this field -- I kind of thought I had a special responsibility to represent millions of Canadians who have a competing point of view." Said NDP environment critic Nathan Cullen: "It's so petty. It doesn't speak to a confident government. If they felt good about how they were dealing with climate change, then they wouldn't mind criticism."

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http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20071122.BALIGTA22/TPStory/Environment