Alberta Premier Danielle Smith almost upstaged Prime Minister Mark Carney’s planned visit with US President Donald Trump earlier this week when she came out with her “Alberta Next” statement. That statement clearly outlined Alberta’s demands from the new federal government. After a decade of mistreatment from the Trudeau Liberals, Smith isn’t wasting any time making the province’s position clear on issues vital to Alberta’s – and Canada’s – future economic fortunes.
In the Alberta Next statement, Smith rightly noted how the last 10 years were rife with federal policies that blocked pipelines, cancelled oil and gas projects, banned tankers only on the West coast and layered a production cap on top of an industrial carbon tax. These policies have driven away global investment and jobs to the detriment of the entire nation, to the point where Canada is not viewed as an attractive place to invest and we are now dead last in terms of economic growth among industrialized nations. Smith commented that the world looks at us like we have lost our minds.
To change this dismal scenario, Smith stated she will appoint a special negotiating team to represent the province in discussions with the federal government on several reforms. These reforms start with the establishment of a guaranteed corridor and port access to tidewater from the Pacific, Arctic and Atlantic coasts for the export of Alberta oil, gas and other resources. Secondly, the federal government must end all incursions into jurisdiction over provincial resources by repealing Bill C-69 (the no more pipelines act), the tanker ban, the net zero electricity regulations, the emissions cap, the net zero vehicle mandate and other laws that pertain to regulating industrial carbon emissions, plastics or the free speech of energy companies. No export taxes or restrictions on Alberta’s resources should be imposed without Alberta’s approval. Changes to the current equalization formula to improve fairness to Alberta were also included.
Smith also said she will establish an Alberta Next panel, to consult Albertans on the province’s future. The conclusions of that panel will be vetted with Albertans in a future provincial referendum in 2026. While Smith does not intend to put a vote on separation from Canada on the referendum ballot, she will respect the democratic process if such a question is supported by Albertans, while fully respecting the constitutional rights of First Nations, Metis and Inuit peoples.
This is certainly a very tall order of the federal government, especially as the new Liberal leader has already stated he plans to retain virtually all of the policies Alberta is demanding be abandoned. Smith has also said that early conversations with Carney have given her some hope he and his colleagues will be more flexible than Liberals were in past years. As many of Trudeau’s cabinet ministers who were very supportive of the policies that harmed Alberta and Canada happened to be re-elected, there is good reason to doubt much change will happen.
It is clear that a key part of the federal Liberals’ strategy in recent months has been to vilify Smith and call her a traitor to Canada for doing her job and defending her province. This Liberal government has been very divisive over their tenure, regularly pitting one group of Canadians against another for political gain. It will be an early measure of Carney’s character if he tries to continue this destructive and cynical approach.
Many observers thought that Carney should have prioritized domestic Canadian issues following the election, such as meeting with premiers like Smith rather than first meeting with Trump. But as Carney had made so much of the election about standing up to Trump, it’s not surprising he believed that was more important. What was surprising was that the Trump meeting was such a nothingburger, with Carney taking care to flatter Trump and not ruffle any feathers while Trump went into his usual rant about how he didn’t need anything from Canada and how Canada had been taking advantage of the U.S. for years. Carney’s docile demeanor in the Trump meeting was a huge departure from his combative election rhetoric. One thing is for sure – elbows were definitely not up in that meeting. The meeting was relatively cordial, but people forget that Trump’s first meeting with Trudeau was also cordial before everything quickly went south.
Many Eastern Canadians have been critical of Alberta, apparently unaware of the fact that what is good for Alberta is also good for Canada as a whole. Much of Canada’s economic decline over the last 10 years has been attributed to the Trudeau government’s sabotage of our immensely important resource sector. In addition, Alberta is not asking for anything more than the type of treatment Quebec has enjoyed for decades. Some Eastern Liberals attempted to defend Quebec and vilify Alberta by saying that Quebec clearly has a distinct culture that justifies their separatist leanings over the years whereas Alberta does not. Clearly those folks have never been to Alberta.
She has published numerous articles in journals, magazines & other media on issues such as free trade, finance, entrepreneurship & women business owners. Ms. Swift is a past President of the Empire Club of Canada, a former Director of the CD Howe Institute, the Canadian Youth Business Foundation, SOS Children’s Villages, past President of the International Small Business Congress and current Director of the Fraser Institute. She was cited in 2003 & 2012 as one of the most powerful women in Canada by the Women’s Executive Network & is a recipient of the Queen’s Silver & Gold Jubilee medals.
