OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney compared Alberta’s independence push to Brexit on Thursday, warning that any referendum effort would create years of uncertainty.Carney made the comments when asked about Alberta’s independence movement and the prospect of a referendum, arguing that Canada’s economic future depends on co-operation between provinces, indigenous communities, industry and the federal government.“This is not a real referendum. It’s not a question about a question, a free option, it’s a dangerous bluff,” Carney said.The prime minister said the debate reminded him of the 2016 Brexit vote in the United Kingdom, which he said was sold to voters as a painless path to more autonomy without sacrificing the benefits of membership.“We’re literally at the 10 year anniversary of Brexit,” Carney said.“I saw firsthand what gets sold in these referendums — that everything’s going to be easy, that you can keep your passport, you can keep the currency, you can stay in the country and leave it at the same time. You get all the benefits, but nothing.”“And you see what’s happened in the United Kingdom. It’s very reminiscent. At a minimum, it’s years of uncertainty before the subsequent question comes.”.Carney argued that such uncertainty would come at the wrong moment for Alberta and the rest of the country, saying Canada is currently well positioned internationally and should not undermine that advantage.“Right at a time the world is fundamentally uncertain, right at a time Alberta and Canada, Quebec, Ontario, the territories, the whole country are moving to the forefront, right at the time when we’re seen as one of the most trustworthy, reliable, desirable countries to do business with, we shouldn’t mess that up,” he said.The prime minister also pointed to ongoing discussions with Alberta on energy and infrastructure projects, including pipeline development and carbon capture, as evidence of what he called the benefits of “co-operative federalism.”He said projects of that scale require Alberta, British Columbia, Indigenous communities, foreign buyers and the federal government to work together.“That is possible because of Canada and because of the goodwill there and the co-operative federalism,” Carney said.He added that “Canada’s worth fighting for” and said the country is stronger when provinces work together rather than turning inward. The Alberta referendum vote will be on October 19.
