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OTTAWA \u2014 <\/span>Ottawa\u2019s one-stop shop for businesses to pitch plans for large industrial construction projects will be headquartered in Calgary and managed by former Trans Mountain CEO Dawn Farrell, the Prime Minister\u2019s Office said on Aug. 29.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The major projects office is part of Prime Minister Mark Carney\u2019s plan to get big, national projects fast-tracked through the approval process.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe are moving at a speed not seen in generations to build ports, railways, energy grids \u2014 the major projects that will unlock Canada\u2019s full economic potential and build Canada strong,\u201d Carney posted on social media Friday.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Liberal government rushed Bill C-5 through Parliament in June, creating a framework for a new approvals process for large-scale projects the government deems to be in the national interest and that could help grow the economy \u2014 including ports, energy and road infrastructure.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The bill raised the ire of various Indigenous and environmental groups who worry the new law could pare back the right to be consulted and lead to environmental harms, and the office announcement on Friday did nothing to quell those concerns.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe opening of the Major Federal Projects Office under the guise of national interest is nothing short of the government deliberately sidestepping its duty to consult and co-operate with First Nations,\u201d said Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe messaging from the prime minister has felt less like an invitation to partnership and more like an ultimatum: get on board or get out of the way. First Nations aren\u2019t opposed to responsible development \u2014 we\u2019re opposed to having our inherent and constitutional rights ignored.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Janelle Lapointe, a senior adviser at the David Suzuki Foundation, said the new office will be \u201cinvesting in the economy of yesterday instead of investing in a future that would prioritize Indigenous rights, a safe climate future and well-being for everyday Canadians.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n But the decision to locate it in Calgary \u2014 home to the headquarters of numerous oil and gas companies which are looking to build new pipelines \u2014 appeared to be a politically strategic one.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who has been heavily critical of Ottawa\u2019s policies on oil and gas, welcomed the location and said she has great respect for Farrell, whom she counts as a close adviser.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very, very pleased that the prime minister and I have something in common, that he\u2019s going to count her as an adviser as well,\u201d Smith said. \u201cShe\u2019s going to be in the right place, in the right city, doing the right job \u2014 and I\u2019m looking forward to working closely with her.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Heather Exner-Pirot, an energy and natural resources expert at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute think tank, said locating the office in Calgary came as a surprise but sends a \u201chuge signal.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThis is obviously a very public acknowledgment, formal acknowledgment that most major projects in this country come from the energy sector,\u201d Exner-Pirot told The Canadian Press in an interview Friday.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI think they (Carney\u2019s office) certainly think about the stallion of the economy, which is oil and gas, and that the low-hanging fruit in diversified trade, attracting investment and increasing our GDP and our productivity is with the oil-and-gas sector. There are a lot of other sectors that need to contribute to that and can contribute to that, but there\u2019s no question the oil-and-gas sector could do that the most easily and the most quickly.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Canadian Chamber of Commerce CEO Candace Laing said the office opening shows the government is moving on a \u201csignificant overhaul\u201d for approving major projects and that Calgary is a good choice since it is close to many of the companies that will be involved in developing major projects.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cHowever, we will be keeping a close watch on this two-track system, which will give some projects an inside track but leaves all other capital at risk of flowing to other markets,\u201d she said in a statement to media. \u201cOur aim must remain squarely on creating an overall economic environment in which our policy can attract the capital and where progress on building projects is the norm, not the exception.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers also welcomed the news as a positive signal to industry, saying there are opportunities to develop liquefied natural gas and other oil industry projects.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n CAPP CEO Lisa Baiton said Farrell\u2019s solid energy-sector background makes her an \u201cideal candidate to oversee significant and complex infrastructure projects with important regulatory and stakeholders relations components, such as Indigenous participation.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Carney\u2019s political opponents in Ottawa were not applauding the move. The Opposition Conservatives, who have criticized Carney for not yet getting any shovels in the ground despite being in office for months, dismissed the new office as more layers of bureaucracy.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Deputy Conservative Leader Melissa Lantsman posted on social media that the \u201cMajor Projects Office = Mostly Photo Ops.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Bloc Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois MP Patrick Bonin slammed the Liberals in a statement sent to media in French for \u201crolling out the red carpet\u201d for the oil industry and then tapping a \u201cpipeline apostle\u201d to head up the office.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Prime Minister\u2019s Office meanwhile had to send out a correction late Friday to the news release it issued to the Parliamentary Press Gallery, swapping a quote from Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc to soften up the wording.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The original hailed the new office as a \u201cradically new way of doing business and getting big things built: different machinery, people, skills, and processes.\u201d The revised quote described it as a \u201ctransformative shift in how we deliver vital infrastructure projects.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Carney said on his recent trip abroad that he plans to start making announcements about port infrastructure investments within the next two weeks.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The next steps for the office are to set up an Indigenous Advisory Council, with its membership to be confirmed next month.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a92025 The Canadian Press<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n