In this photo collage, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is seen leaving the podium after an event in Calgary on May 16, 2025, while Quebec Premier François Legault speaks to reporters at the legislature in Quebec City on April 29, 2025. The Canadian Press
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says her province and Quebec share common ground in pushing back against what she calls federal overreach. Speaking to reporters in Montreal on Monday, Smith said both provinces feel the federal government has crossed into areas that belong to provincial authority.
“We have to get back to operating the country the way it was intended,” Smith said. “We have exclusive areas of provincial jurisdiction. The provinces respect the federal areas of jurisdiction; the federal government doesn’t respect ours.”
Smith’s remarks came before her address to a business audience in Montreal, where she also promoted closer economic cooperation between Alberta and Quebec.
Opposition to Federal Involvement
Smith pointed to Ottawa’s recent decision to ask the Supreme Court to set boundaries on how provinces can use the Constitution’s notwithstanding clause. Quebec has used that clause to protect its secularism law from certain legal challenges, and Smith says she fully supports that move.
“I support Quebec’s right to use the notwithstanding clause,” she said, adding that Alberta plans to take a similar approach soon. According to a leaked document, Smith intends to invoke the clause to amend three laws affecting transgender individuals in Alberta.
Building Economic Ties Across Provinces
During her speech at the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal, Smith emphasized the need for stronger economic partnerships between provinces. She said Alberta could benefit from Quebec and Ontario’s manufacturing strength by sourcing equipment such as steel pipes, turbines, and drilling tools from them instead of from the United States.
“I think we can build more within Canada,” Smith said. “We have the skills, we have the resources, and we should be working together.”
Energy Development and Federal Cooperation
Smith’s trip to Eastern Canada also aims to promote resource development, including a proposed oil pipeline to the northern coast of British Columbia. She said she would meet Prime Minister Mark Carney later in the day to discuss Canada’s economic competitiveness.
“It’s their job to build ports and rail infrastructure, and it’s their job to build cross-border pipelines,” Smith said. “I think it’s the prime minister’s job to show some courage and leadership on this.”
Smith argued that Canada cannot become an energy superpower without renewed federal commitment to major infrastructure projects.
Encouraging Quebec’s Resource Independence
Although Smith said she’s not currently pushing for a pipeline through Quebec, she encouraged the province to develop its own natural gas to reduce dependence on imports from the United States and federal equalization payments.
“If Quebecers want to be strong and sovereign within a united Canada, starting by developing their own resources is number one,” she said. “I’d love to see Quebec create new revenue sources and rely less on equalization.”
Smith added that Alberta is exploring whether it’s possible to ship fossil fuels from Thunder Bay to a Quebec port for export.
Meetings Ahead
As part of her trip, Smith plans to meet federal officials and Members of Parliament in Ottawa. She will then travel to Toronto for a meeting with Ontario Premier Doug Ford on Wednesday to continue discussions about interprovincial cooperation and economic growth.
