Finally working together

There's potentially great news on the environmental front, as the CP reports that all three opposition parties have proposed amendments to Bill C-30 that would result in hard emission caps matching Canada's Kyoto targets. But never ones to let good works go unpunished, the Cons have responded by shutting down the committee for the moment:

The government's centrepiece environmental legislation, the Clean Air Act, is in deep trouble and there's speculation it could become the trigger for an election.

This week all three opposition parties proposed amendments to the bill – amendments that would enshrine the emissions-cutting targets of the Kyoto Protocol, which the Conservatives have called unachievable.

After the amendments were tabled, the government cancelled a Tuesday meeting of the committee studying the bill.

Environmentalists were delighted at the unusual consensus among the New Democrats, Bloc Quebecois and Liberals, whose amendments coincide on key points such as firm limits – known as hard caps – for greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Kyoto targets...

Environment Minister John Baird gave few hints about the government's strategy when questioned Tuesday. He said he is still reviewing the opposition amendments.

The article speculates about the possibility that the Cons could either use an opposition-passed set of standards as an excuse to call an election, or simply refuse to proclaim a rewritten bill into force. But for a government accustomed to setting the political agenda, either one of those would result in a significant show of weakness, while also drawing large amounts of attention to the last policy area the Cons want to be highlighting.

Which means that there may finally be a chance of real emission reductions taking place in the very near future. And all of the opposition parties deserve credit for burying the hatchet long enough to make that the case.