A 214-page document released by the Alberta Transition Council outlines phases, processes and implementation for Alberta to become its own country.
“It deals very seriously with the issues, everything from banking and currency, defense, policing, courts, constitutional processes, international trade, commerce, agriculture, oil and gas, pensions, social benefits, First Nations and it lays it all out,” said lawyer Keith Wilson, who spearheaded the report and heads up Let Alberta Decide.
“We’re not starting from scratch. The people, the resources, the skills, the organizational structures are already in place. We’re simply changing the top of the organization. Instead of having their ultimate boss be in Ottawa, their ultimate boss would be in Edmonton or Calgary.”
The document lays out plans on immigration by preserving existing lawful statuses and mirrors that of Canadian immigration temporarily, including visa and permit categories.
Alberta Sheriffs Police Service would enforce immigration decisions, with the group hopeful that CBSA and IRCC workers could be retained or recruited to help with the transition.
The Alberta Transition Council also believes that if Alberta were to leave confederation, Canada could not force Albertans to relinquish their Canadian citizenship or passports, however it outlines that could change if Canada changed its legislation.
‘Changing how political decisions are made’: Wilson
“Alberta Independence is about is keeping life the same, the economy the same, but changing how political decisions are made,” said Wilson.
“We did look at what federal assets are here. And yes, there would be a need for a negotiation evaluation. That’s why we have real estate appraisers. The federal government has a large office building in Edmonton on Jasper Avenue and a large federal government building downtown, Calgary.”
Wilson is hopeful Alberta could negotiate with Canada for both those facilities, while retaining its workers.
He also believes RCMP workers could be offered jobs within the ASPS.
Cost
But the document leaves out a glaring piece of information: how much would independence cost?
“We’ll be releasing a fully costed report, cost benefit analysis, building from the detailed work in this transition plan later in September,” said Wilson.
At the same time, the Canada West Foundation released its own report outlining how it believes the cost will be a detriment to Albertans, if the province seceded.
“It would appear to be $200 billion just at a minimum,” said president Gary Mar.
“And it would appear fairly clear that our per capita debt as Albertans would go as we have to assume the responsibility for Canadian share of the debt, the Alberta share of the debt would go from currently about $27,000 per person to somewhere in the range of 80 to $90,000 per person.”
Legitimate grievances
Mar’s report notes that Albertans have legitimate grievances with Ottawa.
“There are real issues like your passport, a Canadian passport gives you access to over 100 countries in the world without the need for a visa. But there’s no provision that allows a grandfathering of an Alberta passport to be treated the same way as a Canadian passport,” he said.
“If you’re part of an independent Alberta and you get injured in British Columbia while skiing, you’ll be treated like a foreign national. You won’t have portability of your health care.”
Mar says it’s hard to predict how much a transition would be but estimates it to be around $200 billion, at the very least.
Premier Danielle Smith has previously said it would be in the range of $400 billion.
The province has commissioned a costed analysis on separation which is expected to be made public before the end of summer.
“This is an important decision, and Alberta’s government wants to ensure the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy (SPP) and the expert Advisory Panel take the time needed to produce credible, independent information so Albertans can rest assured that the work was done right,” said Juliana Rodriguez, press secretary to finance minister Jason Nixon in a statement.
“Both the SPP’s final independent report and the Advisory Panel’s independent assessment are expected to be released in the coming weeks, giving Albertans enough time to read, discuss, and decide for themselves ahead of the October 19 referendum.”
