The Alberta Roundup with Isaac Lamoureux - June 15, 2025


The Alberta Roundup ｜ Smith warns separatism surging as pipeline fight escalates


Episode Stats

Length

11 minutes

Words per Minute

171.65855

Word Count

1,962

Sentence Count

104


Summary


Transcript

00:00:00.000 Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is warning that separatist sentiment in the province is higher
00:00:15.600 than ever and that Ottawa would be wise not to test it. Smith says Alberta has reached a breaking
00:00:21.300 point on key energy demands including her proposed pipeline to Prince Rupert and that failure to
00:00:26.960 deliver will only fuel the province's growing independence movement. Meanwhile Smith's approval
00:00:32.940 rating has hit its highest point since taking office even as several premiers across the country
00:00:38.120 are seeing double digit drops. The Canadian Taxpayers Federation has released its annual report
00:00:43.600 card and Alberta is standing out with Finance Minister Nate Horner earning one of the highest
00:00:48.720 grades in the country as most provincial finance ministers actually got a failing grade. Alberta is
00:00:54.780 also lifting its U.S. liquor ban but American products will still face a hefty surtax and as
00:01:00.480 Canada prepares to host the G7 Alberta Energy is poised to take the spotlight. All that and more on
00:01:06.420 this week's Alberta Roundup. I'm your host Isaac Lamoureux. Let's dive into that first story now.
00:01:11.260 Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says that separatist sentiment in the province has reached historic
00:01:16.160 highs and that Ottawa would be making a dangerous mistake by ignoring Alberta's demands. After
00:01:22.000 discussing her previously made demands and the risks the Liberals would face by not working with Alberta
00:01:26.740 on addressing each of them independently along with building a pipeline Smith had the following
00:01:31.560 to say take a listen. We know there's huge frustration out there just because the Liberals won. Yeah. Can you imagine
00:01:38.260 what the frustration will be if what you have been pitching almost daily? Yeah. Your your let's call
00:01:44.080 the demands plus the pipeline does not go through. What what is the risk to to not having that happen? Well I hope the
00:01:53.660 Prime Minister doesn't want to test it because I take it seriously. I have never seen separatist sentiment be as high as
00:02:00.020 it is right now. We've done our own polling and we've seen numbers as high as 37 percent. You look historically I don't know if it's ever been that high.
00:02:08.020 But again I've also seen it dissipate when Ottawa addresses the legitimate concerns Alberta has. And I'm not kidding that the nine demands are my shortlist. I know that there are other tensions that we have with the federal government.
00:02:20.760 But a lot can get resolved when you have the means because people have good paying jobs and you also have the revenues to be able to address some of the
00:02:28.760 social pressures. So I think that for for our sake and for the country's sake, I can't imagine that there will be another project on the national list that will generate as much revenue, as much GDP, as many high paying jobs as a bitumen pipeline to the
00:02:44.760 So that's that will be my pitch and I hope that he is willing to work with us on it. He seems to be giving us the indication that he is, but we'll know for sure in a few more months.
00:02:53.760 So that's even higher than the 30 to 32 percent figure Smith referenced earlier this spring, which was also what a May Leger poll found.
00:03:01.760 If you remember, we've been tracking this number on Alberta Roundup all year, and Smith herself has said that she wants separatist sentiment to go down, not up.
00:03:10.760 But as long as Ottawa keeps ignoring Alberta's demands, that number seems to be rising.
00:03:15.760 If the numbers do keep rising, Smith has pledged an Alberta separation referendum in 2026 if enough signatures are gathered.
00:03:23.760 Some are suggesting that the referendum could even take place earlier at the October 2025 municipal elections, especially if the Alberta Prosperity Project gains enough support for its petition by then.
00:03:35.760 So many demands were previously made by Smith of the federal government, and some of them included repealing Bill C-69, the net zero electricity regulations, the oil and gas emissions cap, the net zero vehicle mandates, and much more.
00:03:47.760 Another demand was for the federal government not to impose export taxes or restrictions on Alberta resources and equalization reform.
00:03:55.760 At the heart of Alberta's demand is Smith's proposal for a one-million-barrel-per-day bitumen pipeline to Prince Rupert, which she pitched to the Prime Minister as part of a broader deal to support Canada's decarbonization efforts.
00:04:07.760 Smith explained that pairing decarbonization investment with a new pipeline is the only viable way to finance these large-scale industrial projects.
00:04:16.760 And we'll remember that there seemed to be a consensus among premiers regarding pipelines, following the recent First Minister's meeting, until BC Premier David Eby, who was notably absent from the meeting, threw a spanner in the works.
00:04:29.760 Smith also called on Carney to stop increasing the industrial carbon tax based on the many concerns raised by industry, which of course she has already done in Alberta.
00:04:38.760 Smith has also now tasked a negotiating team, which consists of several ministers, to begin working with Ottawa over the summer.
00:04:44.760 She said, quote,
00:04:45.760 We're asking for the federal government to put together an equal table, and then we'll go through these one at a time, and hopefully in the fall session we'll be able to make some progress.
00:04:53.760 So we'll see if Ottawa finally moves, or if Alberta's separatist movement continues to grow.
00:04:58.760 So while separatist sentiment is rising, so too is Premier Smith's personal popularity, despite most other premiers seeing a decline.
00:05:05.760 According to an Angus Reid poll released on Thursday, Smith posted the largest approval rating gain of any Canadian Premier this quarter, rising five points to 51%, her highest mark since taking office in 2022.
00:05:18.760 And this comes just weeks after CBC polling showed that the UCP would cruise to an easy majority if an election were held today, something we covered on a previous show that clearly shows how dominant Smith is in Alberta.
00:05:31.760 However, the Angus Reid survey also found that Alberta is Canada's most polarized province politically, with 32% of Albertans strongly approving of Smith's performance and 37% strongly disapproving.
00:05:43.760 Only Manitoba Premier Wab Kanu posted higher overall approval of 68%, which has been consistent throughout his leadership as he's constantly pulled above the other premiers.
00:05:54.760 Only Smith and Kanu have at least one-third of residents strongly approving of their performance, and conversely, Smith and Legault are the lone premiers, with more than one-third of residents strongly disapproving of their performance.
00:06:05.760 Legault recorded actually the sharpest decline of any Premier, falling 13 points to just 25% approval rating, his lowest ever on record, which of course followed Quebec's first credit rating decrease from S&P since 1995.
00:06:22.760 Ontario Premier Doug Ford also saw a 10-point decline, dropping to 38% approval following backlash to Ontario's new Bill 5.
00:06:30.120 EB's approval rating also fell 7 points to 46%, amid criticism over two controversial bills, Bill 14 and 15, which opposition parties have argued grant the BC NDP sweeping powers at the expense of transparency, environmental oversight, and Indigenous rights.
00:06:46.780 But despite attacks from the legacy media for her diplomatic approach with the United States and President Donald Trump, after she travelled to Mar-a-Lago and met with Ben Shapiro, Smith has clearly not suffered after reaching a record-high approval rating for herself.
00:07:00.780 Now let's hop into the Canadian Taxpayer Federation's latest Provincial Finance Minister report card.
00:07:06.780 If you guessed that most provinces failed miserably, you'd be right.
00:07:10.780 Alberta Finance Minister Nate Horner earned a solid B grade, which was actually the second highest in the country.
00:07:16.780 The majority of provincial finance ministers got a failing grade, assuming like most schools, you consider a D to be a fail.
00:07:22.780 The CTF praised Alberta for cutting the lowest income tax rate from 10% to 8%, saving a typical two-person working family about $1,500 a year, which earned Horner an A-plus in the tax relief section.
00:07:34.780 But Alberta wasn't perfect. Horner's spending growth earned an F with spending up 8.4% this year, which is the second highest increase in the country.
00:07:43.780 And perhaps most notably, every single province increased its spending this year.
00:07:47.780 Horner got a B in the debt interest payments category, despite having actually the lowest debt interest payments in the country at $598 per person,
00:07:56.780 and a C in debt by borrowing at least $5.2 billion this year, meaning each Albertan owes about $16,684, which again is the second lowest in the country.
00:08:09.780 Nationwide, the only province to do better than Alberta was Saskatchewan, which earned a B-plus.
00:08:14.780 Nova Scotia and PEI got a C-plus and C-minus respectively.
00:08:18.780 Four provinces had D or D-minuses, while Newfoundland and Labrador and Manitoba were both stuck with Fs.
00:08:25.780 Notice that, how Manitoba was in last place in this taxpayer report card, but has the most popular premier?
00:08:31.780 It's kind of interesting, isn't it?
00:08:33.780 Next up, Alberta is lifting its U.S. liquor ban, but with a catch.
00:08:37.780 Albertans can once again buy U.S.-made liquor after the province ended its three-month ban on American alcohol imports.
00:08:44.780 The Alberta Gaming Liquor and Cannabis Commission confirmed that U.S. liquor products are now allowed back in,
00:08:50.780 but a 25% surtax remains on any American liquor shipped after March 4th.
00:08:55.780 U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra welcomed the news.
00:08:59.780 He said, quote,
00:09:00.780 Smith first imposed the ban in March as part of Alberta's response to U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods.
00:09:17.780 At the time, she said, quote,
00:09:19.780 Until further notice, we just have to drink a bit more BC wine and Alberta craft beer and spirits, and that's just fine with us.
00:09:26.780 But Smith also warned that Alberta would not expand pipeline access to the U.S. while current tariffs remained in place, and that focus hasn't changed.
00:09:33.780 Even with the liquor surtax softened, Alberta's broader strategy remains aimed at building global export capacity, not deeper U.S. reliance.
00:09:42.780 A theme that ties directly back to this week's top story on the proposed pipeline to Prince Rupert.
00:09:47.780 So we'll have to wait and see if this softer tone on liquor signals any broader thaw, or if the province keeps doubling down on new markets overseas.
00:09:56.780 For our last story today, as Canada prepares to host the G7 summit this week in Alberta, which the president is expected to attend, by the way, a new Ipsos poll shows Canada is the most preferred oil supplier among G7 nations.
00:10:09.780 Canada topped the list with 68% of G7 respondents ranking it in their top three preferred suppliers ahead of Norway and the U.S.
00:10:17.780 Alberta Premier Daniel Smith called it a vote of confidence in Alberta's energy industry, saying, quote,
00:10:22.780 Alberta's government has been relentless in our efforts to promote how our province can provide reliable and sustainably produced energy to our G7 partners and beyond, and I am thrilled to see this message is being heard.
00:10:34.780 Ipsos also found that Canada's favourability as an energy supply arose, while the U.S. saw a sharp drop, further reinforcing Alberta's strategic push to market its energy globally.
00:10:45.780 As Smith put it this week, the opportunity is massive, but only if Ottawa gets out of the way.
00:10:50.780 She said, quote,
00:10:51.780 Now is the time for us to work together to unleash the full potential of Alberta's energy sector and create jobs and prosperity for a generation of people in Alberta and Canada.
00:11:00.780 The federal government should act now to remove production caps and join us in supporting an oil pipeline to the West Coast, increasing access to tidewater, and ensuring we can continue to provide Alberta-made energy for our valued partners around the world.
00:11:13.780 With G7 leaders watching from right here in Alberta, that message may carry more weight than ever.
00:11:18.780 That's it for this week's Alberta Roundup. My name's Isaac Lamoureux. Thank you for listening. Have a great weekend and God bless.
00:11:24.780 God bless.