EDMONTON — Former Alberta Premier Jason Kenney says the UCP needs to eject party members who support Alberta independence, saying that both they and the federal Conservatives need to demonstrate their commitment to Canada. "There's no doubt that those folks have infiltrated, and I think it's going to require, there will be, when this is done, a moment where there has to be a reckoning," said Kenney when speaking at an Edmonton Chamber of Commerce event on Tuesday. "Either that party stands for its founding declaration on the commitment to Canada, upon which it has received a majority mandate twice. And if it does, these people have to be shown the door and told they're welcome to participate in democracy, but if their goal, primary goal, is separation, then they have to do it in a separatist party.".The remarks came as Kenney and former premier and ex-Alberta NDP leader Rachel Notley spoke to the audience about the implications of Alberta's independence question on the Oct. 19 referendum. Much of the conversation centred on the claim that Alberta independence supporters are a minority in Alberta. The issue, widely discussed, is that supporters of the movement are a vocal group within the UCP, and they have pressed Premier Danielle Smith to facilitate a referendum. Notley and Kenney said the UCP's current dynamic is "the tail wagging the dog," with a small number of nationalist advocates dictating the party's overall approach.Kenney led the old Progressive Conservative Party through their merger with the Wildrose Party, and became the first UCP leader. He said federalism was a fundamental discussion point when the two parties joined, and they eventually agreed to stand in favour of Alberta within Canada."If that language had not been in the agreement, if the Wildrose signed and refused to accept it, I would have walked away from the table," Kenney said to reporters after the event. "There would have been no UCP." "So, as the principal founder of the party, I can tell you, the United Conservative Party would not exist had it not been for that founding commitment to United Canada, that was ratified by 95% of the members of both the PC and Wildrose parties." .Despite what Kenney claims was the founding intent, polling shows a heavily divided UCP on Alberta independence, including MLA Jason Stephan, who has said he voted in favour of a future referendum. Kenney suggested the party should reaffirm its stance. "I invalidated a three dozen, or so, would-be UCP candidates in 2019 who had a record of advocating for separatism," Kenney said. "So this is not an issue of which you can be half pregnant. You're either for Canada, national unity, or you're not. And if you're not, you're still a citizen. You're welcome to be involved in democracy. Go and do that in a separate party." Individuals have cautioned that such an action risks fracturing the UCP to a degree similar to the PC and Wildrose vote split that led to an Alberta NDP majority government in 2015 and triggered the conservative unification. The Western Standard asked Kenney whether the UCP can survive without allowing nationalist supporters. "That's the base on which it was founded and won two elections," Kenney said. "What it can't survive is a constant internal civil war with separatists trying to take over a federalist party." .A UCP civil war has already begun, to some degree, as factions within the party's membership have tried to galvanize constituency associations and urged them to pass motions calling for a special general meeting and a Smith leadership review.The Highwood and Calgary-Buffalo UCP Constituency Associations are the only groups to pass a leadership review motion, thus far, but tensions are expected to heat up if Albertans vote against pushing the independence movement forward on Oct. 19. Conversely, multiple associations have passed motions supporting Smith. Many people have pointed to the UCP's defeat in September's Calgary-Shaw byelection as a sign that Albertans are frustrated with the UCP, but for different reasons. Some Alberta independence advocates argue that conservative voters stayed home because they disapprove of Smith's UCP. Kenney agreed the vote should send a message, but said it shows that progressive conservative voters, both within and outside the UCP, oppose the party's nationalist evolution. "The byelection result, to me, was a clear message of severely normal, center-right suburban Calgarians, saying they don't appreciate being dragged in to this hugely divisive debate and the tail wagging the dog," Kenney said.
