The lead item on the news this morning was a story about how the federal government has decided not to invite opposition MPs to the UN climate summit in Bali next month.

The announcement to exclude the Liberal, NDP and Bloc Quebecois parties from the official delegation was made yesterday afternoon.

This is a first for Canada. At every single UN meeting since the Kyoto Protocol was drawn up in 1997, it has been common practice to include all parties sitting in Parliament to be part of the official Canadian delegation.

That's because climate change is a non-partisan issue. It requires all of us -- governments, businesses, scientists and ordinary citizens across all political spectrums -- to work together.

Yesterday's announcement was disappointing but we hope it doesn't discourage opposition parties from attending the Bali talks (although they'll now have to attend as mere observers, without the access and influence of delegates).