Walk softly and carry a big stick..Alberta Premier Danielle Smith responded to Ottawa’s proposed Bill C-50 by drawing a constitutional and economic line in the sand. And though it wasn’t explicitly stated, the 500-pound gorilla holding the pencil is clearly the Sovereignty Act..In a lengthy statement, Smith said the primary purpose of the just transition legislation “appears” to be the formation of an advisory council that will provide the Federal Resources minister with recommendations on how to support the Canadian workforce during a transition to a so-called ‘net-zero’ economy..“As the development of Alberta’s natural resources and the regulation of our energy sector workforce are constitutional rights and the responsibility of Alberta, any recommendations provided by this new federal advisory council must align with Alberta’s Emissions Reduction and Energy Development Plan,” she said. .To that end, multiple Alberta government appointments to the council to ensure this alignment should be a mandatory requirement of the proposed legislation, she added..If not, the province will disregard both the spirit and letter of the legislation..“To be clear, if this new advisory council provides the federal government with recommendations that are inconsistent with Alberta’s Emissions Reduction and Energy Development Plan or otherwise interferes with our province’s constitutional jurisdiction over the development of our natural resources and regulation of our energy workforce, Alberta will not recognize the legitimacy of those recommendations in any manner.”.It adds up to a potential Sovereignty Act challenge, although Smith said earlier this week in Calgary that her advisors are still working out the details of what an implementation of the law would look like or how it would be implemented..In televised remarks from the West Block Thursday morning, Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said C-50 would only cover areas of “federal jurisdiction” and not intrude on areas of provincial authority..“We will of course, want to partner with the provinces” on industrial strategy, he said. But added: “We are not simply hoping for the best … it’s complicated and it should be” for such an ambitious undertaking..During a media briefing the question of the composition of the advisory council did come up, and whether there would be a requirement for resource developing provinces to be represented. The response from government officials was that the term of reference for the composition of those bodies has yet to be determined..Nonetheless, it vowed they will be based on the principles of “equity, fairness and inclusion” in order to “hold the government accountable” and promote “policy and program coherence.”.Officials further said both the Alberta government and the Pathways Alliance of the country’s largest oil sands producers had been consulted in the drafting of the legislation..Smith’s statement gave no indication that was the case. Nonetheless, she used the opportunity to tout Alberta’s own achievements with respect to achieving a carbon-neutral economy by 2050 through investment in emissions reduction technologies and the increased export of Alberta LNG to replace higher-emitting fuels internationally. And while Smith vowed to work cooperatively with Ottawa to “unlock billions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of jobs for Albertans and Canadians,” she said time is of the essence to clarify exactly what that means..“I remind the federal government that due to emissions reduction technologies, oil and gas sector jobs are also sustainable jobs and will continue to be so for many decades and beyond. This must be clearly recognized by the government and its new advisory panel members,” she said..“Alberta will not recognize, cooperate with or enforce any attempt to phase out our province’s oil and gas industry or its workforce. This is non-negotiable.”
