The Alberta Roundup with Isaac Lamoureux - First Nations can’t veto Alberta separation vote

00:00:00.000 legal experts told true north that first nations do not have the power to block a citizen-led

00:00:16.360 alberta separation referendum even if treaty rights are involved premier danielle smith

00:00:21.280 responds to outrage from treaty chiefs and defends her government's approach stating that

00:00:25.960 indigenous rights will be respected but democratic processes will continue smith also told ontario

00:00:32.560 premier doug ford to butt out of alberta's affairs after he criticized western separatism meanwhile

00:00:39.420 ndp leader naheed nenshi launched a campaign accusing smith of promoting separation with

00:00:44.980 similar pushback from smith's western colleague however quebec's sovereigntist praised her for

00:00:50.600 standing up to ottawa plus true north has compiled a list of the key players organizing the push for

00:00:56.480 independence from grassroots groups to political parties my name's isaac lamoureux your host of

00:01:02.620 the alberta roundup will cover all of these stories and more today let's hop into that first exclusive

00:01:07.960 now despite fierce criticism from indigenous leaders and the alberta ndp legal experts say

00:01:14.020 indigenous leaders and communities cannot block a province-wide vote on separation canadian

00:01:18.920 constitution foundation lawyer josh de haas told true north there's nothing in the law that would

00:01:23.740 give first nations veto power over a referendum or the negotiations that would follow he said quote

00:01:30.240 there is nothing i'm aware of that would suggest that first nations people could prevent those 1.00

00:01:34.900 discussions from taking place even where treaties exist within canada the law is clear that it is the

00:01:40.540 crown that is sovereign and holds the underlying title to all of the land de haas cited the supreme court

00:01:45.840 of canada's 1998 quebec secession reference noting that a successful referendum on a clear question

00:01:52.560 would trigger a constitutional obligation for ottawa and the provinces to negotiate the terms of

00:01:58.600 separation the legal clarification followed an emergency meeting of treaty six seven and eight

00:02:04.440 chiefs on tuesday during the meeting indigenous leaders denounced smith and bill 54 the legislation that

00:02:11.360 lowers the bar for citizen initiated referenda and lays the groundwork for a potential 2026 vote on

00:02:17.520 alberta's independence however smith said her government is still many steps away from any

00:02:22.800 potential vote and would not support any referendum question that infringes on treaty rights at a tuesday

00:02:29.600 press conference smith said quote you can't vote away treaty rights you can't vote away indigenous rights

00:02:36.000 you can't have a referendum on things that are enshrined in our various constitutional conventions

00:02:40.640 and laws and court decisions while smith made it clear that her government would not put forward an

00:02:46.240 independence vote she said she would respect a citizen-led initiative if it met the 177 000

00:02:52.240 signature threshold under the new legislation constitutional lawyer keith wilson has also been

00:02:57.920 outspoken about the impact of first nations groups if a referendum vote were to occur he said quote

00:03:04.240 respectfully the chiefs would benefit from legal advice they don't have a veto on whether alberta

00:03:09.760 separates wilson noted that indigenous communities could choose whether to maintain their current

00:03:14.640 treaty arrangements with ottawa transition to new treaties with the sovereign alberta or negotiate an

00:03:20.240 entirely new framework but only if separation occurs he clearly outlined the legal separation process

00:03:26.320 in several of his posts to x firstly any eligible voter would be able to vote in an independence

00:03:32.720 referendum with no person or group receiving special treatment upon a successful vote the province of

00:03:38.960 alberta first nations from alberta the other provinces and the federal government are all

00:03:43.760 legally required to engage in good faith negotiations to establish terms therefore the first nations would

00:03:50.800 be able to remain with canada and maintain the status quo request that the new independent alberta

00:03:55.200 take them with the existing treaties or negotiate new treaties with alberta the first nations would make

00:04:00.880 this decision for themselves wilson added that thanks to the 1930 natural resource transfer agreement

00:04:07.760 the government of alberta owns almost all of the land and oil and gas in alberta a spokesperson for

00:04:13.440 smith told true north that she has stated unequivocally that she would commit to protecting upholding

00:04:19.040 and honoring the rights of first nations metis and inuit people smith said quote any citizen initiated

00:04:25.360 referendum question must not violate the constitutional rights of first nations metis and inuit peoples and

00:04:31.920 must uphold and honor treaties 6 7 and 8 should any referendum question ever pass this is non-negotiable

00:04:40.480 for our next story we'll cover smith's defense from eastern backlash over separation talks now you might

00:04:46.320 think this was from ottawa but it was actually ontario premier doug ford who was coming at smith she told

00:04:52.800 him to mind his own business smith said quote i don't tell him how he should run his province

00:04:58.640 and i would hope that he doesn't tell me how i should run mine but we have a very respectful

00:05:03.040 relationship and i hope that continues smith threw a subtle shot right back at ford she said quote in 1.00

00:05:09.680 fact i think we supported different people in the last federal election suggesting that ford despite

00:05:15.520 being a conservative premier might have voted for mark carney smith's response came after ford

00:05:21.360 targeted the independence movement he said quote this is a time to unite the country not people

00:05:27.120 saying oh i'm leaving the country as of right now smith predicted that just over 30 percent of

00:05:32.720 albertans would support a separation referendum while it was initially expected that a separation

00:05:37.680 referendum could occur at alberta's next municipal elections in october 2025 smith revealed this was

00:05:44.080 unlikely given the new 120 day collection period up from the previous 90 she pledged that albertans would

00:05:50.800 see a referendum in 2026 if the legal threshold was met independent of that smith announced she would

00:05:57.360 appoint a special negotiating team to represent alberta in meeting with ottawa the group's goal

00:06:03.040 would be to create a binding agreement called the alberta accord the plan also includes smith

00:06:08.640 chairing the alberta next panel which will consist of leaders in the judicial academic and economic

00:06:14.640 spheres the panel will conduct various online and in-person town halls to discuss alberta's future

00:06:21.520 in canada and propose a referenda despite not putting her government support behind separation

00:06:27.360 smith defended the albertans backing the movement she said quote the vast majority of these individuals

00:06:33.920 are not fringe voices to be marginalized or vilified they are loyal albertans they are quite literally our

00:06:40.320 friends and neighbors who've just had enough of having their livelihoods and prosperity attacked

00:06:45.120 by a hostile federal government smith's negotiating team will make various demands of the federal

00:06:50.640 government including guaranteed access to tidewater ports for alberta's resources ottawa repealing

00:06:56.880 federal legislation that hinders alberta's energy sector protection against federal export taxes

00:07:02.800 without alberta's consent and equitable per capita federal transfers and equalization payments the

00:07:09.680 specific policies it's the family and friends event at shoppers drug mart get 20 off almost all

00:07:16.480 regular priced merchandise two days only tuesday february 24th and wednesday february 25th open your pc

00:07:23.440 optimum app to get your coupon smith demanded the federal government repeal included bill c69 aka the no more

00:07:32.880 pipelines act the oil tanker ban the net zero electricity regulations the oil and gas emissions cap

00:07:39.360 the net zero vehicle mandate and any other federal law regulating carbon emissions plastics or

00:07:45.440 infringing on the free speech of energy companies alberta beat the feds in court on both bill c69

00:07:51.520 and ottawa's attempt to regulate plastics despite this the liberals have ignored the court decisions

00:07:57.440 according to smith alberta also recently launched a new court challenge on net zero regulations and the

00:08:02.880 provincial government is preparing to challenge the energy production cap while smith was announcing the new

00:08:07.840 teams on monday she explained that strong and free is more than just alberta's motto she said quote

00:08:14.560 we just want to be free free to develop and export the incredible wealth of resources we have for the

00:08:19.920 benefit of our families and future generations free to pursue opportunities with the ideals of

00:08:25.280 entrepreneurship hard work and innovation that have become synonymous with the name of our province

00:08:31.360 for our next story we'll take a look at an intra-provincial feud taking place in alberta so despite smith

00:08:37.680 clearly distancing herself from the separatist movement putting it in the citizens hands alberta

00:08:43.840 ndp leader naheed nenshi has launched a campaign accusing smith of pushing separatism the campaign website

00:08:51.120 separatist smith claims that smith wants alberta to leave canada and is aggressively pushing a radical

00:08:56.880 separatist agenda it also urges albertans to tell danielle smith to shove her separatism back in the

00:09:03.040 closet where it belongs nenshi's push came after smith clarified her non-involvement she said quote

00:09:09.600 i specifically said we would not be bringing forward as a government a question on the issue of independence

00:09:15.600 so it would be up to individuals to draft that question and go through a process with lawyers that

00:09:20.160 they might consult nenshi and the alberta ndp have insisted the premier support for bill 54 is

00:09:26.080 equivalent to promoting separatism however smith has also stated that she wants support for separation

00:09:32.080 to go down not up and that she is focused on negotiating a stronger deal within canada ndp mla

00:09:39.680 brooks arcane paul claimed that smith was already impacting indigenous treaty rights simply by allowing

00:09:45.360 a referendum framework to exist nenshi further alleged that while smith unequivocally said no

00:09:51.600 referendum would be allowed to infringe on treaty rights every referendum question will infringe on

00:09:56.640 treaty rights according to him while smith is not advocating for any petition from her government

00:10:02.000 nenshi has called on albertans to sign his own petition on his new website constitutional lawyer keith

00:10:08.080 wilson said quote disappointing to see nenshi dismiss the value of democratic choice denying citizens of

00:10:15.280 vote on critical issues reflects an authoritarian mindset prioritizing control over representation

00:10:21.840 while saskatchewan premier scott moe has hinted that he too would support citizens making their

00:10:26.800 own decisions on separation bc premier david eby went the other direction like smith moe said he'd rather

00:10:34.640 strengthen the province within canada but he also noted how many saskatchewanians did not support the

00:10:40.400 liberals in the federal election and that a citizen-initiated referendum in saskatchewan

00:10:45.760 would be honored however bc premier david eby suggested that the two premiers smith and moe

00:10:52.480 should instead rule with an iron fist pushing back strongly against any kind of separatist sentiment

00:10:58.160 in their provinces eby said any idea of bc separating was a non-starter he said quote but i

00:11:05.680 certainly encourage them all premier smith premier moe and i believe that they're on board for this

00:11:11.360 to work together for the good of the country to hold the country together and to push back strongly

00:11:17.040 on any kind of separatist sentiment eby also took aim at conservative mla david williams who he said made

00:11:23.840 a dumb move by sharing a western separatist map freedom convoy organizer tamara leach criticized eby for

00:11:31.680 sounding a little dictatorial and calling on the premiers to crush the western independence movement

00:11:37.360 rather than sit with them to understand their concerns she said quote this is exactly the

00:11:44.080 attitude that contributes to the sentiment behind this movement not a single word about sitting down

00:11:49.040 and exploring why so many western canadians are feeling completely alienated not a hint of having

00:11:54.960 an open mind finding common ground or working together to find solutions believe it or not smith

00:12:01.280 also got the support of an eastern provincial party smith gained support from the party quebecois

00:12:07.120 the provincial quebec separatist party not to be confused with the federal bloc quebecois

00:12:12.960 party leader paul saint-pierre plamondon said quote this is a premier who has decided to address the

00:12:20.000 government of canada directly by saying if you do not respect our democracy you do not respect our

00:12:25.360 financial choices and our priorities i will respond to your abuse of power with concrete

00:12:29.920 actions plamondon praised smith's threat of a referendum to attain leverage over the federal

00:12:36.080 government the party quebecois launched referendums on quebec sovereignty twice in 1980 and 1995 both of

00:12:43.920 which failed however saint-pierre plamondon vows quebec will see a third referendum by 2030 should his

00:12:51.200 party form government after next year's provincial election he also took shots at quebec premier

00:12:56.320 francois legault through smith plamondon said quote what a striking gesture to see daniel smith

00:13:02.240 do more in terms of autonomy and defense of her own province than francois legault has done over his

00:13:07.760 entire mandate for our last story today we'll do a quick overview of a list that true north compiled

00:13:13.680 on the key players behind alberta's separation movement from grassroots groups to political parties

00:13:19.040 and influential online organizers first up the alberta prosperity project is one of the largest

00:13:25.520 educational organizations pushing for a referendum and had just under 150 000 albertans registered by

00:13:32.160 thursday the project isn't a political party but plans to begin the official 120-day signature

00:13:38.640 collection process once it gathers enough pre-signatures and elections alberta gives approval of the petition

00:13:44.960 the project is advocating for alberta to hold a referendum that would give the provincial

00:13:49.920 government a mandate to negotiate its place within or outside of the confederation the group also

00:13:56.880 advocates for the creation of an alberta pension plan alberta police force and provincial control over

00:14:02.240 resource development taxation immigration and employment insurance another petition the alberta

00:14:08.400 separation western alliance petition has been circulating on change.org for several years and it

00:14:14.320 recently found renewed attention with over 225 000 signatures the petition calls for alberta and

00:14:21.520 other western provinces like bc saskatchewan and manitoba to enter survival mode and begin polling

00:14:28.160 public support for separation from the rest of canada although this petition holds no legal weight and isn't

00:14:34.160 recognized under alberta's referendum laws the petition continues to generate significant online

00:14:39.760 attention and speaks to a broader sentiment of western alienation then we have the republican party of

00:14:45.520 alberta which is a registered political party led by cameron davies it supports joining the united states

00:14:51.680 and was formerly known as the buffalo party davies has a colorful political history and has rebranded the

00:14:57.760 movement with bold claims about alberta's economic future under u.s alignment there's also the wild rose

00:15:04.320 independence party which was formed through the merger of wexit alberta and the freedom conservative

00:15:09.120 party in 2020 the new party is led by g van mengat and supports a sovereign alberta within a democratic

00:15:15.520 framework it recently co-hosted a sovereignty rally at the legislature in collaboration with the

00:15:20.960 independence party of alberta the independence party of alberta was founded in 2000 and re-registered

00:15:26.480 in 2019 and it goes a step further it wants to draft a provincial constitution and build alberta's own

00:15:32.640 military justice system and currency framework next is take back alberta the group that once reshaped

00:15:39.440 the ucp from the inside founder david parker recently wrote a piece titled alberta separatism

00:15:46.320 must succeed laying out why the province needs to exit what he calls a nation in terminal decline

00:15:53.120 parker said quote alberta deserves a future if canada refuses to provide one we must build it ourselves

00:16:00.640 in the coming weeks i'll make the full case for alberta separation the highlights more money for 0.69

00:16:06.000 alberta pensioners lower taxes for all albertans including corporate and income tax and most

00:16:11.360 importantly a future outside of a nation in terminal decline he added that prime minister mark carney

00:16:17.760 is the greatest threat alberta has ever faced online several x accounts are helping build momentum for

00:16:23.760 the movement such as alberta secession why alberta separation and rise of alberta these accounts

00:16:30.800 share legal resources organized support and combat misinformation especially around indigenous veto

00:16:37.360 claims from registered parties to digital campaigns the alberta sovereignty movement is no longer fringe

00:16:43.760 it's organized well-funded and quickly approaching the threshold needed to trigger a historic vote that wraps up

00:16:50.880 this week's show my name is isaac lamoureux your host of the alberta roundup have a great weekend thank you and god bless

The Alberta Roundup with Isaac Lamoureux - May 12, 2025

First Nations can’t veto Alberta separation vote

Episode Stats

Summary

Transcript