OTTAWA – Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault is calling out Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre for holding a fundraising last year in Banff, Alta., with oil and gas sector executives.
An Elections Canada filing shared by the Liberals shows that a number of executives, including one from a major oil and gas company, attended a Conservative fundraiser advertised as “An Evening with Pierre Poilievre” on April 11, 2023.
Records show Alexander Pourbaix, executive chair of the board of directors at Cenovus, donated $1,600 to Conservative Party of Canada the next day.
Guilbeault says Poilievre’s pledge to do away with carbon pricing is about helping his “rich friends.”
Poilievre has promised to “axe” the consumer carbon price, which was brought in by the Liberals to encourage consumers and small businesses to reduce carbon-emitting consumption.
The Conservative leader has not made his position clear on the industrial carbon pricing system, which makes big polluters pay on a portion of their emissions.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 24, 2024.
Note to readers: A previous version of this story identified Alexander Pourbaix as the CEO of Cenovus. He now holds the title of executive chair of the board of directors.
