Premier Danielle Smith says she will be moving ahead with the mandate handed to her by the Albertans who voted ‘yes’ in Monday’s referendum. Smith spoke to the media in Calgary on Wednesday for the first time since the vote. “I accept the results of the referendum. I accept the mandate that Albertans have given us to work towards a strengthened position but within a united Canada.” Any possible changes relating to the referendum results should be expected in time for the spring session of legislature, she said. “The conversations have already begun,” Smith said. In her Tuesday evening address, Smith said the result gave her government a clear mandate to work toward Alberta’s future within Confederation. “And I want to make it clear tonight that for as long as I am premier, I will honour this mandate from Albertans and will not be holding another referendum on this issue,” she said. Smith called on Albertans to move forward together, while pledging to continue pushing for greater provincial autonomy. “We will use every legal and political tool at our disposal to protect and advance the interests of Albertans. And when Ottawa interferes with those rights, we will be unrelenting in our response.” On Wednesday, Smith said she has already spoken with Prime Minister Mark Carney. “He is accepting that Albertans want to have a more collaborative approach between his government and ours on issues of immigration and so I told him we would be working on putting a proposal together.” She mentioned the accord the federal government signed with Quebec in 1991 that allowed that province to exert its own control on immigration. Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi, who has criticized the referendum as a distraction, said Smith now faces a choice between continuing divisive political fights and changing course to govern for all Albertans. Polling conducted by Abacus Data before the referendum suggests affordability and health care are higher priorities for Albertans than changing the province’s relationship with Ottawa. Asked what the provincial government should prioritize next year, 43 per cent chose affordability and 38 per cent chose health care. Getting a better deal within Canada was selected by 10 per cent, while six per cent chose moving toward independence. ‘Yes’ leads on seven of nine other referendum questions With 92 per cent of polls reporting, unofficial results show “yes” leading on seven of the nine questions. Questions 6 and 8 are the only ones where “no” is ahead. Those results are closer than the outcome on the separate question about Alberta’s future in Canada. Smith said Tuesday the early results pointed to support for greater provincial control over immigration and requiring temporary residents to pay a portion of the cost of public services used by them and their families. At the time of her address, she said she was still awaiting confirmation of results on other proposals, including greater provincial involvement in selecting judges and abolishing the Senate. Smith said her government would pursue reforms approved by voters over the coming months and years. This is a developing story. More details to come... With files from Timm Bruch
