As the final days of the federal election campaign drew near, the UCP used the legislature floor last week to position Alberta as a powerful, responsible and indispensable partner in Confederation.
But not one without grievances.
The bottom-line message? You start doing your part, Ottawa, and we’ll keep doing ours.
Matt Jones, the minister of jobs, economy and trade, last Thursday criticized the federal government for “deeply flawed policies” like emissions caps and the Clean Electricity Regulations. Jones also dissed increases in capital gains taxation announced under the former prime minister but since dropped by Mark Carney.
Federal policies “could threaten the very prosperity that funds Canada’s future,” Jones said.
“That’s why Alberta is standing up not just with words but with action. We’re diversifying trade, investing in value-added industries, and putting forward strong Alberta-first policies through every legal and political channel. We’ll always put Alberta jobs and Alberta industries first, because when Alberta wins, Canada wins.”
Polling for the April 28 election favours the Liberals forming a fourth consecutive government, after years of the UCP fighting the feds over constitutional powers, environmental policies and more.
Still seatless Prime Minister Carney, new to the elected political scene, has portrayed himself as the leader with the economic experience to deal with Donald Trump and his protectionist, tariffs-forward approach to trade.
Meanwhile, Pierre Poilievre, leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, has watched polling signal a reversal in his party’s fortunes, relegating the party to second place behind the Liberals as he distances himself from Trump and his policies.
All this means Alberta could again find itself with a federal government not as ideologically aligned as a Conservative government would be. And the NDP claims that’s exactly what Premier Danielle Smith wants.
Smith needs enemies in Ottawa so she can justify her approach to governance, said Heather Sweet, the NDP’s deputy house leader.
Sweet accused the premier of manufacturing a national unity crisis and whipping up separatist sentiments. “Rather than sit on the sidelines, she’s interjected separatist rhetoric into a national debate,” Sweet maintained in the legislature April 16.
“It’s theatre,” said Sweet, the Edmonton-Manning member. “The premier is putting on a play where she claims to be the hero, but she needs a villain, and who plays a better villain and keeps her the centre of attention? That’s the Liberal Party of Canada.”
A recent Angus Reid poll found that one in four Albertans would favour separation in a referendum.
Smith has said repeatedly that meeting with Trump, sharing a stage with far-right pundit Ben Shapiro, being interviewed on Fox News, and making other forays onto U.S. soil and airspace are all about landing Albertan and Canadian messages.
Alberta fosters relationships on both sides of the aisle in the U.S. No matter who’s elected at the state or federal level, it’s important that U.S. legislators understand “the Alberta story” and that “Alberta is a strong partner and ally in their aspirations,” Smith said last week.
“These are messages that our friends in America need to hear,” she said. “We need to have a fortress North America approach where we know that we can support the Americans in their aspiration for energy dominance.”
UCP MLA Glenn van Dijken said Smith’s approach towards Ottawa is sound. The premier has outlined nine “clear and reasonable demands” for whoever wins the election, the member for Athabasca-Barrhead-Westlock said.
Smith seeks guarantees that Alberta will have “full access to unfettered oil and gas corridors,” her list says. It calls for Bill C-69 — which the UCP calls the “no new pipelines act” — to be repealed and a tanker ban off the B.C. coast to be lifted.
Eliminate the oil and gas emissions cap and scrap federal Clean Electricity Regulations, Smith has demanded. Also on the list are ending the single-use plastic prohibition, abandoning a mandate for net-zero cars, returning oversight of the industrial carbon tax to the provinces, and “halting the federal censorship of energy companies.”
“This is not a wish list,” said van Dijken. “This is Alberta standing up for its constitutional rights, its industries and its people. Alberta cannot afford to be sidelined.”
UCP colleague Eric Bouchard, the member for Calgary-Lougheed, called Alberta “not just another province in Confederation.” The fossil-fuel-rich, breadbasket Prairie province is “the economic engine that drives this country.”
He said: “To the new generation of flag-waving, bandwagon Liberals, let’s be clear. National unity depends on Alberta’s success.”
The jobs, economy and trade minister, meanwhile, said Alberta has a young workforce, low taxes and GDP (gross domestic product) growth that’s expected to lead the nation. The UCP is cutting red tape, attracting investment and expanding market access, Jones said, estimating that Alberta has since 2023 secured over $115-billion in private-sector investment and added 100,000 jobs, Jones said.
“Alberta’s economic success is not just good for us; it’s vital for Canada,” said the member for Calgary-South East. “We’ll keep fighting to ensure our world-class industries are never held back by any threat, foreign or domestic.”
But Sweet’s statement from the NDP side was all about Danielle Smith’s leadership and motives. “This premier is only standing up for herself and never for Albertans. She needs the Liberals to win, for if not for the Liberal government, then who else can she blame for the failures in Alberta? The premier and her government? Not likely.”
Advance polling in the 2025 election ends today. The election itself is next Monday, April 28, when Canadian voters will complete the filling of 343 seats in the House of Commons. Alberta has 37 ridings, with 17 of them beyond the two largest cities.
In the most recent Parliament, 30 of Alberta’s 34 seats were filled by Conservatives, two by Liberals and two by NDP members. Recent redistricting of Canada’s electoral map saw the province gain three seats.
By George Lee, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Macleod Gazette
