‘Canada works’: Carney on national unity, pipelines at Calgary Stampede

Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks with CTV's Tara Nelson at the Calgary Stampede.

Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada is “stronger when we’re together” while visiting the Calgary Stampede on its final day, doubling down on comments Alberta’s separatist movement presents a “dangerous game” that could backfire.

Speaking with CTV’s Tara Nelson, Carney said Canada and Alberta both had a lot to lose in the event a future vote on the province’s independence is held.

“Canada works,” Carney said. “It can work better and it works better when people are engaged.”

Carney, who was the governor of the Bank of England when U.K. voters elected to leave the European Union by a razor-thin margin in 2016 in a referendum vote that caused catastrophic economic blowback, said Alberta’s leaving Confederation would only “rip up” several free trade agreements Canada benefits from.

Alberta’s secessionist movement has dominated national attention in recent months. The latest development in that saga is Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s decision to include a question on whether the province should hold a referendum that asks voters whether Alberta should remain part of Canada.

“We’re fighting Canada and building up the country,” he said.

“My job is to make Alberta stronger, to make Canada stronger. We’re making real progress on that.”

Part of that fight for Alberta has included the push for a new pipeline.

Carney’s last appearance in Calgary included a joint appearance with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith earlier this month as the leaders announced a proposal for a new pipeline had been submitted to the major projects office.

That pipeline, which would stretch from Bruderheim, a town northeast of Edmonton, to a terminal in Delta, B.C., would follow the existing Trans Mountain pipeline and deliver one million barrels a day to tankers. From there, the oil would be able to ship to Asian markets.

But the project was submitted to the major projects office without support from a private investor. Carney and Smith have said the price tag for the project is between $35.2 billion and $43.7 billion. The Alberta government has said it has already spent $18.3 million planning the project so far.

Still, Carney said the pipeline will create a boon for Alberta and Canada’s economies that would allow Canada to become more independent when it comes to exporting more oil to Asian markets.

“That’s a big shift (that) means a higher price for all our oil,” he said.

— With files from CTV’s Tara Nelson