WAGNER: The NDP recognizes Quebec’s right to self-determination, but not Alberta’s

The independence referendum issue in Alberta has exposed the Alberta NDP’s double standard on questions of provincial self-determination. The NDP declares that “the people of Quebec” have the right to freely decide Quebec’s “own political and constitutional future,” but will not say the same about the people of Alberta.As is widely known, on May 13, a judge quashed Stay Free Alberta’s petition to initiate an Alberta independence referendum. Gleefully, Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi said that the provincial government could not hold such a referendum: “They cannot do it without defying the law, without defying the courts, and without knowingly doing something that is illegal.”Nenshi is clearly opposed to holding an independence referendum.There’s a fly in his ointment, though. In 2005, the NDP adopted a policy known as “the Declaration,” recognizing “Quebec’s right to self-determination,” which includes the right to hold an independence referendum. Furthermore, as the CBC reports, “the NDP would regard a vote of 50 percent plus one to be sufficiently clear to trigger secession talks.”This means that for Quebec, the NDP has abandoned the Clarity Act’s criteria of needing a “clear majority” vote in favour of independence and instead would accept a simple 50% plus one. At least on this point, the NDP doesn’t think Quebec needs to follow the Clarity Act. Recently, a reporter asked federal NDP leader Avi Lewis whether the NDP would recognize 50% plus one as sufficient for an Alberta independence referendum. .Lewis stumbled around, trying to explain his stance: “We have a position, the Sherbrooke Declaration, on the question of sovereignty in Quebec. The sovereignty, the separation movement in Alberta, has no point of comparison with the historic sovereignty movement in Quebec.”He went on to describe the Alberta independence movement as a “MAGA-aligned, potentially funded, disruptive movement.”The Alberta movement, he said, “it’s not the same thing [as the Quebec movement]. There isn’t the history.”Indeed, Alberta hasn’t had a long history of a strong independence movement like Quebec has had. But how does that affect a province’s right to self-determination? How does the fact that “there isn’t the history” justify denying Albertans the right to vote on their future? His point makes no sense.Lewis continued, “This is an internal Alberta problem right now and I don’t believe that there will ever be a referendum … So what I’m saying very clearly, and I’ll say it in English just to be perfectly clear, is the margin of victory in an Alberta referendum is irrelevant right now because I don’t believe there will be a referendum.”.The original question posed to Lewis was whether he would recognize 50% plus one as being sufficient to pass an Alberta independence referendum. He refused to answer, saying the question is irrelevant because he doesn’t believe there will be an Alberta independence referendum.So, when it comes to Quebec, the NDP openly declares that 50% plus one is all Quebec needs to pass an independence referendum. But when it comes to Alberta, the NDP refuses to answer because the question is supposedly “irrelevant.”The double standard is clear. In the NDP’s scheme, there’s one rule for Quebec and another entirely different rule for Alberta. This is especially important right now because the NDP has an anti-independence campaign called “For Alberta, For Canada.” You may encounter these people at some point. It would be interesting to ask them why the NDP considers Quebeckers, but not Albertans, to have a right to self-determination. Due to the way the NDP is organized, its federal and provincial wings are closely affiliated. The Alberta NDP constitution says that the Alberta NDP is “a section of the New Democratic Party of Canada.” This means the Sherbrooke Declaration is in some sense the official policy of Nenshi’s party. It recognizes that Quebec — but apparently not Alberta — has a right to self-determination. The NDP needs to explain why it views Albertans as having second-class status on the question of independence.

WAGNER: The NDP recognizes Quebec’s right to self-determination, but not Alberta’s

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