Trudeau's oil pipeline tarnishes his climate credentials ahead of Canadian election

FILE PHOTO: Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attends a working lunch at the Group of 20 (G-20) summit in Osaka, Japan, on Friday, June 28, 2019. Kiyoshi Ota/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

CALGARY, Alberta/WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has cast himself as a champion in the fight against climate change while pushing to expand an oil pipeline to help struggling producers, a contradiction that may hurt his re-election bid next month.

Trudeau's Liberal government bought the Trans Mountain pipeline for C$4.5 billion (2.76 billion pounds) last year to ensure the expansion would proceed. Months later, a court blocked the project because it said the government had failed to adequately consult indigenous peoples living along the pipeline's path.