Truck convoy protests carbon tax, Liberal policies
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/01/2019 (2696 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
The yellow vest movement staged a rally Saturday by forming a convoy of trucks along the Trans-Canada Highway.
Dozens of trucks started at about 11:30 a.m. in Virden and ended in Brandon.
RCMP were on the scene to address any traffic issues and warned motorists to expect traffic delays.
Motorists honked their horns and a small group of supporters held up placards as dozens of trucks rolled through Brandon later.
The yellow vest protesters expressed frustration over a number of issues, including carbon taxes, illegal immigration and Liberal government policies they say hurt the oil industry.
An online poster promoting a truck rally called for a total reform of Canada’s electoral system and equalization payments, while cutting “wasteful spending in Ottawa.”
In immigration, it calls for Canada’s withdrawal from the United Nations Global Compact for Migration, a non-binding intergovernmentally negotiated agreement that covers all dimensions of international migration.
Kelly Saunders, Brandon University political science professor, called the movement “a flashpoint, I think, for just a number of frustrations that different pockets of Canadians might be feeling.”
The convoy was often split as drivers waited at intersections before proceeding, but their enthusiasm didn’t wane, and their horns blared as they rolled through Brandon and headed back to the Trans-Canada Highway.
As he waited at the staging area for the convoy to begin, Damen MacGillivray, a Brandon wealth-management consultant, said he organized the protest convoy to draw attention to federal government policies that have had a negative effect on Canadians.
“These policies just don’t help the average person,” he said, pointing to the carbon tax, designed to cut carbon emissions, as one example.
“Is the solution more taxation? Personally, I don’t think so.”
As the rumble of diesel engines grew louder, MacGillivray said many of the truckers in the convoy depend on the oil industry for their livelihoods and they blame the government for their woes.
The protestors take their name from the yellow vest movement that originated in France last fall and spurred mass demonstrations against high gas prices, taxation and business-friendly reform.
— Brandon Sun