Western Standard - Danielle Smith： “It is time to move forward together”

00:00:00.000 the people of Alberta cast their votes

00:00:01.940 in an open and democratic referendum.

00:00:04.100 And the resulting vote from Albertans

00:00:06.000 has given our government a clear mandate.

00:00:10.240 Alberta will remain a province of Canada.

00:00:12.880 Albertans will continue to be Canadians.

00:00:15.540 And our government will work cooperatively with Albertans,

00:00:18.420 the federal government, and our fellow provinces

00:00:21.480 to secure a prosperous future

00:00:23.260 for our province and our country.

00:00:25.600 And I want to make it clear tonight

00:00:27.320 that for as long as I am Premier,

00:00:29.860 I will honour this mandate from Albertans and will not be holding another referendum on this issue.

00:00:35.700 It is time to move forward together as a strong and free Alberta within a united Canada.

00:00:41.640 Make no mistake, our government will continue to boldly assert our province's autonomy

00:00:45.960 by exercising the provincial rights guaranteed to us under Canada's constitution.

00:00:50.840 We will use every legal and political tool at our disposal to protect and advance the interests of Albertans.

00:00:56.740 And when Ottawa interferes with those rights, we will be unrelenting in our response.

00:01:02.040 But those disputes will be settled within the political and legal institutions of our nation,

00:01:07.100 rather than pursuing the option of separation.

00:01:09.760 I am well aware that not every grievance Alberta has with Ottawa has been resolved.

00:01:15.300 There are still many political and constitutional battles ahead of us.

00:01:19.080 But I'm also convinced that the federal government is no longer targeting and trying to phase out

00:01:23.900 and eliminate Alberta's largest economic sectors as they attempted to do under the previous

00:01:29.080 prime minister. In fact, both the federal conservatives and federal liberals are united

00:01:34.540 in supporting Alberta and our key industries in a manner we haven't seen in a generation.

Western Standard - October 21, 2026