Alberta’s government is pushing back against Ottawa after the federal government threatened to pull previously promised Housing Accelerator Funding from Red Deer.Minister responsible for Housing Jason Nixon said Alberta will not allow its communities to be penalized for making decisions in their residents’ best interests.In a statement, Nixon said Ottawa has demanded the Red Deer funds be redirected to other Alberta cities, primarily Edmonton, or be lost entirely. He noted the federal government maintained housing funding for Toronto despite similar local zoning decisions. The minister criticized Ottawa for providing an $8.8-billion housing deal to Ontario, a province that lags behind Alberta in housing development.Nixon confirmed Alberta has approved one-time increases to the Housing Accelerator Fund for Edmonton and Airdrie, but said the province will not sign further agreements until Red Deer and other municipalities are treated fairly. “Situations like this are why Alberta’s government passed the Provincial Priorities Act,” he said. “We will not allow Alberta, particularly rural and mid-sized communities, to be left behind.”.Alberta, which represents 12% of Canada’s population and was the only province to see population growth in 2025, received less than 7% of recently announced $1.7 billion in federal housing funding. The province has led the nation in housing starts per-capita for two consecutive years and accounted for nearly a quarter of national housing starts and 80% of prairie starts in 2025.Red Deer Mayor Cindy Jefferies called for Ottawa to prioritize results over process.
