Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met behind closed doors Saturday with Burnaby Mayor Mike Hurley, and leadership from the city’s fire department, before wading into crowds during a campaign-style event at a local street festival.
Throngs of people surged towards Trudeau, who obligingly posed for selfies and made small talk, while reporters shouted questions about the meeting.
“It went great. Thank you,” he responded, initially short on details, before acknowledging the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion was on the agenda. “We talked about some safety concerns and how we’re working together.”
The federal government has set a deadline of June 18th to make a decision on the controversial project, which would terminate at Burrard Inlet in Burnaby.
It’s a day many area residents are anxiously anticipating.
"We live on Barnett Road, so if there ever is any leak, it will directly impact our neighbourhood,” said Carlton Miller after meeting the PM. “So, yeah, I do, I have a big concern about that."
Burnaby North-Seymour MP Terry Beech and Vancouver-Kingsway candidate Tamara Taggart joined Trudeau for what felt like a campaign event.
Just over four months before the next election, pipeline politics aren’t the only topic voters want to discuss with Trudeau.
"I'm into whether he has apologized to Jody (Wilson-Raybould), a woman of integrity, and he should be man enough as the prime minister to stand up for integrity and honesty, and to give a public apology to her,” said Burnaby resident Cheryl Godding.
Wilson-Raybould announced last week that she would be seeking re-election as an independent, after being ousted from the Liberal Party of Canada.
Between the pipeline and the fallout from Wilson-Raybould’s acrimonious departure from the party, it promises to be a long, hot campaign season on the south coast.
