WATCH: Scheer RIPS Trudeau for pipeline inaction

“Will our country be one of the rule of law? Or will our country be one of the rule of the mob?” Andrew Scheer said in response to Prime Minister Trudeau’s recent statement regarding the anti-pipeline protestors who are currently blockading several railways and ports.

“Let me be clear Mr. Speaker, standing between our country and prosperity is a small group of radical activists, many of whom have little to no connection to First Nations communities. A bunch of radical activists who won’t rest until our oil and gas industry is entirely shut down.”

“Now they may have the luxury of not having to go to work every day. They may have the luxury of not facing repercussions for skipping class, but they are blockading our ports, our railways, and our borders and roads and highways. They are appropriating an Indigenous agenda which they are willfully misrepresenting.”

This comes in response to Trudeau’s statement on February 17, wherein Trudeau gave little insight into what action would be taken. “We had a good meeting with morning with the incident response group, discussions with ministers, I made some phone calls to Indigenous leadership as well as a number of premiers. I understand how worrisome this is for so many Canadians and difficult for many families across the country. We’re going to continue to focus on resolving the situation quickly and peacefully, and that’s what we’re going to do.”

Protestors at this point remain blockading several crucial areas of travel for Canadians as well as routes necessary for transporting millions of dollars worth of goods.

Scheer called Trudeau’s inaction the “Weakest response to a national crisis in Canadian history.”

“I listened to the Prime Minister’s word salad just now, and at least two key things were missing: a clear denunciation that the actions of these radical activists are illegal, and some kind of an action plan that will put an end to the illegal blockades and get our economy back on track.”

Scheer called the statement a “complete advocation of responsibility and of leadership.”

Scheer also highlighted that the majority of members of the Wet’suwet’en people were in support of the coastal gas link project. “every single elected band council on the gas link route supports this project. The majority of hereditary chiefs support this project.”