Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Alberta is “essential” to Canada’s future on Friday, hours after the province announced plans for a referendum on whether to begin the legal process for a future vote on separation from Canada.
Carney’s remarks came after Alberta Premier Danielle Smith confirmed that voters in the oil-rich province would be asked in October whether the provincial government should pursue a binding referendum on independence.
The move follows a court decision blocking a separatist petition that sought to force a direct vote on secession, citing insufficient consultation with Indigenous groups potentially affected by the process.
Speaking from Parliament Hill, Carney repeatedly stressed cooperation between Ottawa and Alberta, highlighting recent agreements aimed at expanding energy infrastructure and accelerating development projects.
“We’re working with Alberta on making it better,” Carney said.
He also pointed to plans to fast-track an oil pipeline connecting Alberta to Canada’s West Coast, describing the province as being “at the centre” of the country’s economic future.
Smith, while reaffirming her support for Alberta remaining within Canada, criticised the judicial ruling that halted the separatist initiative.
She said the court’s decision interfered with “the democratic rights of hundreds of thousands of Albertans”.
The referendum question proposed by Smith’s government would ask voters whether Alberta should begin the constitutional process required to hold a binding referendum on separation.
Separatist groups in Alberta say they collected more than 300,000 signatures supporting a vote on independence, while another campaign backing Canadian unity says it gathered more than 400,000 signatures.
Polls indicate that most Albertans remain opposed to independence, although support for separation has risen amid frustration over federal environmental policies and energy regulations.
Smith credited Carney with adopting positions more favourable to Alberta’s oil and resource sectors compared with former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre also rejected separation efforts, saying he would campaign to keep Alberta within Canada.
Critics, including Liberal MP Corey Hogan, warned that the referendum could deepen political divisions and create a broader national crisis.