Alberta's chambers of commerce say separation talk not helping attract business

Minister of Jobs, Economy, Trade, and Immigration, Joseph Schow, swears the oath of office in Calgary on Friday, May 16, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

EDMONTON — Alberta’s chambers of commerce say talk of the province potentially quitting Confederation is bad for business, with one saying it’s time Premier Danielle Smith’s government move on from blaming former prime minister Justin Trudeau.

The Alberta Chambers of Commerce says a recent survey of members and investors suggested more than half of participants say the provincial separation issue is affecting the provincial economy and making it hard to plan.

“Alberta separation is the top business issue right now,” said Shauna Feth, the chamber’s chief executive, in an interview.

“The concern isn’t about ideology so much as it is about the uncertainty that that discourse creates.”

The move comes as Smith’s government makes headlines with the separation question. Smith has made clear she supports Alberta staying in Canada, but her government has also made rule changes to make it easier for a separation question to go on a referendum ballot. One group is now trying to raise the requisite number of signatures to make that happen.

Smith has said she supports “a sovereign Alberta within a united Canada,” something the Opposition NDP has mocked as self-contradictory “word salad.”

Deborah Yedlin, head of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, says they are hearing similar sentiments.

“People (are) saying, ‘You know what, I’m just going to wait and see what happens because if this goes in the direction that I don’t support, I will be either not expanding my business in this province or I will be leaving,’” Yedlin said.

“There have been inbound questions from larger companies who do have operations outside the province and outside the country saying, ‘Is this real?’”

Doug Griffiths, who fronts the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, said Smith’s government needs to quash the separatist talk.

“If I had a choice, it would be for the Alberta government to say, ‘Enough. We’re focusing on business growth, economic growth, … not talking about leaving this country,” Griffiths said.

“The whole thing is a moot point … We’re on Indigenous land. We’re guests here. And if any of them say, ‘We aren’t separating,’ then we’re not.”

Indigenous leaders have been vocally opposed to the separatist movement in Alberta. Multiple First Nations are challenging in court provincial legislation permitting citizen-led petitions that seek referendum votes, such as the ongoing campaign to put separation on a ballot.

Jobs Minister Joseph Schow said this week he appreciates the chamber feedback and said the government’s message to them is that it has its eye on the ball.

“I’m going to continue to focus on keeping regulation low, keeping taxes low, being a liaison between them and other opportunities (for) investment around the world, because Alberta is the best place to work,” he told reporters.

In a statement, Schow blamed investor uncertainty on policies of former prime minister Justin Trudeau that Alberta has said infringed on its constitutional jurisdiction and sabotaged its core oil and gas industry.

Some of these policies are being reviewed or reworked under Prime Minister Mark Carney.

Nevertheless, Schow said the effects continue to reverberate.

“After years of advocacy, and months of negotiations the federal government have reversed the vast majority of their anti-resource policies — the ‘nine bad laws’ — and I’m hopeful that as we continue to implement the Alberta-Ottawa MOU, we will restore investor confidence in Canada,” Schow wrote.

He said investment in Alberta has grown and the province is a national leader in jobs and job creation.

Griffiths agreed, saying things are “going well right now,” but added leaders have to think long term and putting the blame on Trudeau doesn’t make sense.

“People are not investing over what happened in the last 10 years,” Griffiths said.

“Investor uncertainty is about where you’re going, not where you’ve been.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 12, 2026.

Fakiha Baig, The Canadian Press