Apr 28, 2007 07:02 PM
Canadian Press
The Conservatives' new environmental platform is a ``complete and total fraud" that is "designed to mislead the Canadian people," former U.S. vice-president Al Gore said today.
The noted environmentalist was presenting his documentary "An Inconvenient Truth" in Toronto at a consumer environmental show, with Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and environmentalist David Suzuki in attendance.
Gore praised Suzuki for confronting Environment Minister John Baird on Friday, saying he saw the two exchange words on TV.
When Baird told Suzuki the Conservatives were going further than any other government in Canadian history, Suzuki said it wasn't enough.
The Conservative government strategy focuses on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving air quality. But the plan failed to spell out precisely what many of its regulations will look like.
"In my opinion, it is a complete and total fraud," Gore said. ``It is designed to mislead the Canadian people."
Gore acknowledged he is not a Canadian citizen and said he has ``no right to interfere in your decisions."
However, he said, the rest of the world looks to Canada for moral leadership, and that's why this week's announcement was so "shocking."
Baird released a statement later in the day in which he refuted Gore's criticisms.
"The fact is our plan is vastly tougher than any measures introduced by the administration of which the former vice president was a member," Baird said in the statement.
Baird's statement also offered an invitation for Gore to discuss climate change and the Conservatives' environmental policies with him.
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