OTTAWA-
Alberta Premier-designate Danielle Smith says she is ready to fight in Ottawa for Alberta’s autonomy to develop its resources, so it can build pipelines to bring oil and gas to the market and stimulate the forestry and agricultural sectors.
“We’ve always been treated like a lower level of government,” she said in an interview on CTV’s Question Period, which aired Sunday. “We acted like that. But we’re going to stop acting like that. We are going to take our place as the main partner of the Confederation.
Smith also plans to refer the federal carbon tax to the Supreme Court, after it ruled last year that the policy was constitutional.
She added that Alberta deserves the respect of being one of the largest economies in the country and echoed parts of her Thursday night election victory speech that Albertans will not be “silenced and censored,” and the province “will no longer ask Ottawa for permission to be prosperous and free.
“We will not have our resources locked away or our energy phased out by a virtuous prime minister,” she said during her speech. “Albertans, not Ottawa, will chart our own destiny on our own terms and we will work with our fellow Canadians to build the freest and most prosperous country in the world.
Smith told CTV’s Question Period that she was ready to work collaboratively with the federal government, but would “push really hard” to develop resources.
“They can take us to court if they want to arrest us, but I think we would win this battle,” she said. “That’s what I’m looking forward to.”
Smith has promised to push for more autonomy for Alberta throughout his campaign. Premier-designate hopes to table her controversial Alberta sovereignty act by early December, following her plan to win the southeast Brooks-Medicine Hat seat in the Legislative Assembly in a by-election launched next week.
The law would give the Alberta Legislative Assembly the power to override federal laws it deems contrary to the best interests of the province.
“I think it’s fair for the feds to let them know that we’re getting our relationship back to what it was meant to be,” Smith said.
In a separate interview also airing Sunday, federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson told CTV’s Question Period that while Alberta is “pushing to the limit on some of these issues,” it Opportunities still exist to work together, including at its Regional Energy and Resource Tables office.
“I continue to be of the opinion that this federation works best when we find ways to work together, understanding that there are always differences,” he said.
As for Smith’s promise to bring the federal carbon tax back to the Supreme Court – arguing that the recent energy and affordability crises are “new information” the court should consider before handing down a ruling. new decision – Wilkinson said he thinks “this issue has largely been settled”.
“It’s up to the courts to decide whether they accept a new challenge, but I would say from a legal point of view I think the bar is very high,” he said. “That would be very unusual because I think the Supreme Court would hear a case again and just decide, and there would almost certainly be a process that would have to be followed and the arguments really would have to be fundamentally new arguments.”
“But of course Alberta is free to try again in court if they feel it is worth doing,” he added. “I would just say I think the matter is settled. There are ways we can actually move forward without spending a lot more money to litigate an issue that I think has already been resolved.