Friday Focus: Alberta's Slanted Referendum

The referendum questions on October 19th will be a turning point in Alberta. Depending on how the votes go, Albertans will be portrayed as narrow-minded, intolerant and selfish or broad-minded and welcoming. Whatever the outcome, the referendums create economic uncertainty and will discourage business investment in Alberta. If the path toward separation is chosen (as unlikely as that seems), businesses will leave the province, just as they left Quebec after its referendum.

The referendum questions aren’t really about democracy, as the separatists claim. Other, more pertinent questions, like the use of the notwithstanding clause by the government, have been ignored. The referendum questions are, instead, part of the UCP’s ongoing propaganda campaign to blame Alberta’s problems and the challenges facing Albertans on the federal government. This is to bolster the UCP’s persona as defenders of Albertans’ interests against those Canadians “back east” (who mostly inhabit central Canada) so the UCP can use it to get re-elected as Alberta’s government.

The UCP-run Alberta government has mailed out a pamphlet to Albertans dealing with the referendum questions full of subtle innuendo and biases trying to blame the federal government for our troubles, including poor access to health care, long wait times in hospital emergency rooms, and overcrowded school classrooms. Those are all the responsibility of the provincial government under our constitution.

The pamphlets also include at least one blatant lie. They say the Supreme Court of Canada “invented” the doctrine of paramountcy. But that’s clearly not true. The doctrine of paramountcy comes from the structure of our constitution dating back to 1867. It was recognized way back in the 1890s by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom (which was the highest court for Canada until after the Second World War). All the doctrine says is that when provincial laws and federal laws conflict, in areas that aren’t clearly provincial or federal jurisdiction, the federal law takes precedence over the provincial law, which is then invalidated.

Albertans need to show the world we’re broad-minded and welcoming, despite the slanted referendum. I, on behalf of the Alberta Liberals, urge you and other Albertans to vote “no” to the first nine questions and choose Option 1, to remain Canadian, in the last one. Your future, your family’s future, and Alberta’s future depend on it.

Make sure you vote, as only votes that are cast count. A poor turnout could make the strident separatists look stronger than they are.

Show your support for Alberta staying in Canada at altaincanada.ca. Tell your friends and family they should do the same.

Thank you for your support.