^ Make Your Voice Heard. Use our Email Tool Above ^

In 2023 alone, Canada’s Federal Government provided $18.6 billion to the fossil fuel and petrochemical industry. Which means a substantial amount of taxpayer money went towards making it cheaper to find, extract, process, transport, and export fossil fuels and their derivatives. Compare that to the government's investments in climate change solutions and it's staggering. 

And it’s even crazier when we think about the actual purpose of subsidies: to foster initiatives that are HELPFUL to the general public... The oil & gas industry is one of the most wealthy and powerful ones in the world and the leading emitter in Canada. Redirecting those billions to renewables and nature-based solutions could transform our future. Imagine the impact if we redirected that kind of money every single year! 

It’s all about a just transition and shifting the fossil fuel workforce to renewable energy projects in order to #KeepItDeep. So join us in demanding that Canada stops all public financing of fossil fuels — use our email writing tool above to have your voice heard.

Full Letter Text

Dear Prime Minister Trudeau and Honourable Ministers,

I am writing this letter to call on the Government of Canada to fulfil its commitment to phase out public financing of the fossil fuel sector, including derivative petrochemicals and plastics.

I was pleased to see the Federal Government’s decision to end financing of the international fossil fuel sector in 2022. However, despite these new policies, in 2023 the federal administration still provided over $18 billion to fossil fuel and petrochemical companies.

Canada cannot claim to have ended support for fossil fuels until domestic public finance has been eliminated. 

It is of the utmost importance that Canada aligns itself to a pathway that limits global heating to 1.5°C and develops a robust renewable energy sector that leaves no worker behind. These steps are critical in aligning Canada’s economic policy with its climate goals. 

Therefore it is critical that the Government of Canada makes urgent progress on the commitment to phase out all public financing of the fossil fuel sector by Fall 2024. Little progress has been made since the federal government first made the commitment in 2021. 

Fulfilment of the Federal Government’s commitment to eliminate public financing must include:

• Introduce a clear approach to phase out public financing of the oil and gas sector, including the scope of activities and sources of financing that will be covered by Budget 2024.
  
  
• Ensure that all public financing aligns with a 1.5°C pathway and supports the transition off of fossil fuels to renewable energy. Public financing that leads to carbon lock-in, stranded assets or continued production of oil and gas must be phased out by Fall 2024.
  
  
• Uphold the Polluter Pays principle. The oil and gas sector should bear the responsibility to reduce emissions itself, rather than passing these costs on to the public.
  
  
• Rule out ineffective investments into carbon capture and storage (CCS) and fossil-derived hydrogen, which are being used to prolong the extraction of and reliance on fossil fuels.
  
  
• Redirect financing toward renewable energy. The policy should not only include robust conditions for phasing out domestic public financing for fossil fuels; it should also provide details on how the financing will be redirected toward renewable energy projects consistent with worker’s and human rights.

Canada cannot meet its domestic commitments and obligations under the Paris Agreement without ending domestic financial support for fossil fuels. We must take accountability, and take a role as an international leader in this transition. 

The pathway to zero emissions and a climate–safe future does not include subsidies or public financing for the oil and gas industry.