Prime Minister Harper under fire for ATV jaunt

It was planned as a harmless photo-opp, but Stephen Harper has come under fire from environmentalists after he was photographed riding an ATV in the Yukon yesterday.

Prime Minister and his wife took a short, off-road trip near Whitehorse on Monday after leaving a community barbecue and before visiting husky puppies. The move, however, irritated local activists, who say they have spent years trying to mitigate the damage done by all-terrain vehicles on the area’s “pristine wilderness”.

The Carcross Desert — which Mr. Harper explored on rented ATVs — is home to at least two species of at-risk plant and insect life, conservation officials told the National Post.