We wish former federal Environment Minister Jim Prentice well in his new career at CIBC. We have not been fans of the Harper Government’s environmental program, especially on climate change. But we admit that we were pleasantly surprised last week when then Environment Minister Prentice refused to allow the proposed British Columbia “Prosperity Mine” to destroy Fish Lake and the associated ecosystem, plus threaten Taseko River, a major salmon bearing river. I wondered how Mr. Prentice was getting away with this within the Conservative establishment; perhaps he could only have made this decision by first being ready to leave government.
Many commentators speculate that Prentice will return as a candidate for leadership of the Conservative party after a lucrative stint on Bay Street; perhaps, by then, the Conservative party will be ready for a Red Tory. In the meantime, he is reportedly going to be working on funding renewable energy, a project that we heartily support. Good luck and best wishes.