The Supreme Court of Canada on Friday ruled that the Liberal government in Ottawa violated the national constitution with the 2019 Impact Assessment Act (IAA), aka “no more pipelines bill,” which claimed exclusive authority over environmental approval of natural gas, oil and forestry projects. 

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“Parliament has plainly overstepped its constitutional competence,” five of the seven justices ruled. The ruling scraps in part the IAA, which provincial governments and industry opposed in prolonged debates. Left intact is oversight of projects that are done or financed by federal authorities on lands that belong to the national government inside Canada or in other countries.

The verdict largely upheld a decision issued in May 2022 by the Alberta Court of Appeal, which stated the...