Alberta Premier Jason Kenney flipped his final pancake at the premier’s Stampede breakfast Monday morning.
The breakfast is held annually, but the Calgary Stampede was cancelled in 2020 due to COVID-19.
At around 7 a.m. there were more than 250 people in attendance at the McDougall Centre to enjoy a bite to eat on Day 4 of the Calgary Stampede. A government spokesperson later confirmed over 3,000 people attended.
During the event, Kenney announced to the crowd he’s declaring Sept. 1 as “Alberta Day.”
“We are instituting a new annual tradition to celebrate this province in a big and beautiful way by declaring Sept. 1 — the day we joined confederation — forever into the future as Alberta Day,” Kenney said.
“We rightfully celebrate Canada Day, it’s time that we also celebrated this place we call home.”
In a news release, the Alberta government said celebrations in both Edmonton and Calgary will be held along with the support given to other municipalities who will plan to host their own events. More details of exactly what the day will look like will be shared in the coming months, the news release stated.
At a media scrum afterwards, Kenney said the day will not be a statutory holiday due to Labour Day being in proximity.
“Labor Day, depending on the year, it might sometimes be right around there. So, no, we already have a statutory holiday … but this is about taking one special day of the year, setting it aside and actually celebrating this province.”
Kenney also hinted at an announcement taking place later this week regarding a factory being built that will be an “over a billion-dollar” investment for the province.
Later this week, the Council of the Federation, which represents premiers from Canada’s 13 provinces and territories, will meet in Victoria along with leaders of the National Indigenous Organizations, a collection of five national Indigenous groups.
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