Canada’s Alberta to Hold Referendum on New Restrictions for Immigrants

The Canadian province of Alberta will hold a referendum on restricting immigration and reducing newcomers’ access to public services as it grapples with falling crude prices and a growing budget shortfall.Author of the article:You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.(Bloomberg) — The Canadian province of Alberta will hold a referendum on restricting immigration and reducing newcomers’ access to public services as it grapples with falling crude prices and a growing budget shortfall.Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.The oil-rich region plans to hold a vote on Oct. 19 asking voters if they support the provincial government taking more control over immigration, in order to bring the influx of newcomers to “more sustainable levels,” Premier Danielle Smith said in prepared remarks for a television address Thursday.Alberta, which has higher average incomes and lower tax rates than other provinces, has grown about 15% in six years to pass 5 million people last year. That’s the fastest rate of any large Canadian province, according to estimates from the national statistics agency. Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of Top Stories will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againInterested in more newsletters? Browse here.At the same time, Smith is dealing with a right-wing populist movement that’s seeking more autonomy for the province, with some activists trying to force their own referendum on independence.Smith’s government will deliver a budget next week that’s being pressured by weaker resource revenues. A drop in oil prices since 2022 has turned a nearly C$12 billion ($8.8 billion) surplus into an expected deficit. Desjardins analyst Randall Bartlett has said the shortfall may exceed C$10 billion in the fiscal year that starts April 1.“Although sustainable immigration has always been an important part of our provincial growth model, throwing the doors wide open to anyone and everyone across the globe has flooded our classrooms, emergency rooms and social support systems with far too many people, far too quickly,” Smith said in her remarks.While immigration in Canada is primarily a federal government responsibility, provinces have some say.The referendum will ask voters if they support requiring people without citizenship or permanent residence status to live in the province for 12 months before they can access provincially-funded social support programs and charging those individuals a fee for access to health care and education.Voters will also be asked whether they back a law requiring people to provide proof of citizenship, such as a passport, birth certificate, or citizenship card, in order to vote in provincial elections — a measure that echoes the Save America Act being promoted by President Donald Trump in the US.The Alberta approach draws inspiration from Quebec’s long-standing nationalist policies to assert its autonomy — not only in immigration, but also in fiscal matters and in establishing its own pension fund. In 1991, the province signed an agreement with Ottawa to gain more powers over immigration, with the aim of protecting its most widely spoken language, French.That accord, which recognizes Quebec’s distinct identity, gives the province the power to select newcomers and set immigration thresholds, and provides for financial compensation for the management of integration services.Statistics Canada reported in December the first quarterly decline in Canada’s population on record, other than during the Covid pandemic, driven by a record drop in non-permanent residents.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has moved to shrink the number of temporary residents after their numbers ballooned in 2023 and 2024.Years of anti-Ottawa sentiment in Alberta has sparked a provincial independence movement, with a group currently collecting signatures to try to trigger a referendum that proposes breaking away from Canada. Backers of the measure say they have have met with members of the Trump administration to try to garner support at a time when relations between Canada and the US languish at their lowest in decades amid a US-instigated trade war. However, polls show a majority of Albertans favor staying in Canada. Beyond immigration restrictions, Smith was less specific on how she would address the deficit. She pledged the government would make no drastic cuts on social services and will “stay the course” on plans to grow the province’s sovereign wealth fund, called the Heritage Fund, to C$250 billion from its current C$32 billion by 2050.Carney has tried to assuage Albertans’ frustration by pledging to roll back environmental rules imposed by Justin Trudeau, including a cap on oil and gas emissions. He also promised, in a memorandum of understanding signed in November, federal support for a new pipeline capable of carrying as many as 1 million barrels a day of crude to the British Columbia coast.The new pipeline would be needed for Smith to achieve her stated goal of boosting Alberta’s oil production by 2035 to 8 million barrels a day. Alberta’s oil sands regions accounts for most crude output in Canada, the world’s fourth-largest producer.Smith also proposed referendum questions seeking voter backing to work with other provinces to make changes to the Canadian constitution — such as abolishing the Senate and allowing provinces to opt out of federal programs without losing funding. But constitutional changes of that nature are very difficult to approve in Canada.—With assistance from Mathieu Dion and Derek Wallbank.Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.