The Premier of British Columbia had some scathing comments about the Alberta separatist movement ahead of Thursday’s first ministers meeting in Ottawa.
David Eby said reported meetings between separatist leaders and U.S. Treasury officials to talk about separation amounts to “treason.”
“I understand the desire to hold a referendum, to talk about the issues we want to talk about in Canada. We’ve got free speech, so that’s important. But to go to a foreign country and to ask for assistance in breaking up Canada. There’s an old-fashioned word for that, and that word is treason,” said Eby, who was among the premiers who spoke to the media ahead of their meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney.
Eby has been at odds with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith over her desire for a new oil pipeline from Alberta to the northern coast of B.C.
A report in The Financial Times, citing sources familiar with the talks, reports that leaders of the Alberta Prosperity Project, the group that is spearheading the separatist movement, have already met three times with U.S. State Department officials in Washington since April.
And one of the leaders of the movement, Jeffrey Rath, recently said on social media that he looks forward to “meeting with US Treasury officials next month to discuss our feasibility study regarding a 500 Billion USD line of credit to support the transition to a free and independent Alberta.”
U.S. President Donald Trump has made no secret of his desire for Canada to become the 51st state. Last week, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also appeared to throw his support behind the Alberta separatist movement when he said the province’s vast oil reserves make it “a natural partner for the U.S.”
“Albertans are very independent people,” said Bessent. “People are talking. People want sovereignty. They want what the U.S. has got,” Bessent added.
“I think we need to draw the line at people seeking the assistance of foreign countries to break up this beautiful land of ours that our forefathers, our foremothers, our parents, our grandparents fought for,” said Eby. “You know, there is a line.”
Asked if he will be raising the issue with Smith during the first minister’s meeting, Eby said, “I think that all of us, myself, Premier Smith, every premier has a role to play to say that this is unacceptable conduct.”
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The issue also drew the ire of Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who called the reported meetings between Alberta separatists and U.S. officials “unacceptable” and “unethical.”
“Going behind Canada’s back and negotiating is unacceptable. We’re one country and we should all be sticking together,” said Ford. “We all know where President Trump stands. He wants Canada, and that’s not going to happen.”
Ford also called on his Alberta counterpart to speak out against the meetings between the separatists and the Americans.
“This is an opportunity for Premier Smith to stand up and say enough is enough,” said Ford. “Either you’re with Canada, or you’re not with Canada. I’m with Canada right across the board.”
“We need to be united, a united Canada. I’ve always said, united we stand, divided we fall,” Ford added.
Smith, who has been accused by opponents of courting the separatists, has so far not publicly denounced the movement, instead saying she would prefer to see a strong and sovereign Alberta within a united Canada, to which Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi has responded by calling it “word salad.”
Following the first ministers meeting in Ottawa on Thursday, both Smith and Prime Minister Mark Carney were asked for their reaction to Eby’s comments.
Smith responded by saying “When you look at the polls, they suggest as many as 30 per cent of Albertans have lost hope. That’s about a million people. I’m not going to demonize or marginalize a million of my fellow citizens when they’ve got legitimate grievances. We need to give Albertans hope. We need to show them, not just tell them — not just words, but with actions — that Canada can work.”
As for reports that supporters of the Alberta sovereignty movement have been meeting with American officials, Smith said, “I would expect that the U.S. administration would respect Canadian sovereignty and that they would confine their discussion about Alberta’s democratic process to Albertans and to Canadians.”
“I will raise that with my delegate in Washington so he can raise it with members of the administration and I will raise it with my delegate in Ottawa so he can raise it with the U.S. ambassador,” Smith added.
While Carney said he hasn’t discussed the idea of Alberta’s or Quebec’s separation with President Trump, he did say, “I expect the U.S. administration to respect Canadian sovereignty.”
Despite the reports of the meetings between Alberta separatists and American officials, so far, the leaders of the Alberta Prosperity Project have said they don’t think anyone in the movement wants to join the U.S.
The group has been holding meetings across the province to gather signatures on a petition demanding the Smith government hold a referendum on separation.
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In an interview with Global News, the group’s lawyer, Jeffrey Rath, admitted they’ve been meeting with American officials to discuss, amongst other things, the idea of a “$500 billion credit swap or bond issue — to help a free and independent Alberta,” but he insists nothing they are doing is treasonous.
“We’re a group of private individuals who are trying to educate our fellow Albertans on the value of Alberta independence. We are having discussions with members of the U.S. administration to try to gauge the level of support there would be from the United States administration,” said Rath.
“I think people are very upset about Scott Bessent coming out and stating the obvious, that the U.S. — sees Albertans as very like-minded people who would be friends, neighbours, and allies as an independent country. People are upset about that and they’re trying to find ways to criminalize what we’re doing while nothing could be further from the truth,” added Rath.
He also had a message for the Alberta premier who, amongst the other issues on the table at Thursday’s first minister’s meeting, wanted to discuss building a new oil pipeline to the west coast of B.C.
“So why are you flying to Ottawa to grovel, to Carney and Eby and all these other idiots to have a pipeline in Canada when the U.S. is holding the door open for you to have an Alberta pipeline down to the United States?” said Rath.
“Like none of it makes any sense to me other than apparently they’re all globalists so they hate what we’re doing and they know we’re winning.”
Despite Rath’s bluster, an Ipsos poll, released earlier this week, said approximately 29 per cent of Albertans would vote to separate from Canada, but only half that number would support separation when faced with the costs and consequences of doing so.
— with files from The Canadian Press
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