Alberta Premier Danielle Smith told Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that phasing out the Oil and Gas industry is not going to happen — and “this is non-negotiable.”
Smith appears to be setting the stage for her sit down that’s set for next week with Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson, and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc, who are coming to Alberta.
“It appears the primary purpose of the proposed ‘Sustainable Jobs Act’ is to form an advisory council that will provide the federal government with recommendations on how to support the Canadian workforce during transition to a ‘net zero economy,’” she said in a memo posted to Twitter.
Smith continued, saying that Alberta has constitutional jurisdiction over its natural resources and energy sector. She said that Alberta has its own Emissions Reduction and Energy Development Plan, which aims to reach net-zero by 2050.
She added, “To that end, multiple Alberta government appointments to the council to ensure this alignment should be a mandatory requirement of the proposed legislation.”
She further said that if the federal Sustainable Jobs Act council recommends anything inconsistent or interferes with Alberta’s plan, “Alberta will not recognize the legitimacy of those recommendations in any manner.”
“Alberta will not recognize, cooperate with or enforce any attempt to phase out our province’s oil and gas industry or its workforce. This is non-negotiable,” she said.
Earlier this week at the Global Energy Show in Calgary, Smith hinted she’ll use the Sovereignty Act if needed to stop the Trudeau Liberals from interfering with Alberta’s energy transition plan.
