Alberta refuses to sign statement at contentious western premiers’ meeting

By Dean Bennett The Canadian Press

WATCH ABOVE: Conservative MP John Barlow and Bernard Hancock, an Albertan employed in the oil and gas industry, spoke at a rally in Ottawa for the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

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Alberta has refused to endorse the official statement stemming from the western premiers’ meeting in Yellowknife because it didn’t include support for the Trans Mountain pipeline.

The final communique deals with issues such as pharmacare and legalization of marijuana.

Alberta deputy premier Sarah Hoffman said without the wealth that would flow from the expansion of the pipeline, all discussions on such issues are moot.

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“All of this costs money and we have one way to ensure we have that money and those resources, and that is for us to move forward with this project in the national interest. That’s what I came here to do,” said Hoffman, who was attending the meeting Wednesday in place of Premier Rachel Notley

“Unfortunately we didn’t get consensus on Trans Mountain today.”

Alberta sees the federally approved pipeline, which would triple the amount of oil flowing from Alberta’s oilsands to the British Columbia coast, as key to unlocking lucrative overseas markets.

B.C. Premier John Horgan’s minority government is fighting the expansion in court. The province is worried about the threat of a major spill and the capacity to clean it up.

He said his position remains the same after the meeting.

“Certainly Alberta made their case as they always do in a strong and passionate way, and I laid out my concerns about risk and the court cases that we are currently enjoined in,” he said. “Beyond that, we did make great progress on a range of other issues important to British Columbians and western Canadians.”

The pipeline has driven a deep wedge between Alberta and B.C. and their respective NDP governments.

The Alberta government has passed legislation that allows it to reduce oil flowing to B.C., which could drive up gas prices and other fuel-related costs.

Notley said Tuesday she was skipping the meeting because her time was better spent in Edmonton making sure the project goes ahead.

Watch below: Alberta Premier Rachel Notley said Tuesday her time is better spent in Edmonton, working on moving forward on Trans Mountain, than at the premiers’ meeting “chastising B.C. Premier John Horgan.”

‘It’s not business as usual’: Rachel Notley explains decision to skip western premiers’ meeting

Pipeline owner Kinder Morgan has ceased all non-essential spending on the project until it receives assurances it can proceed without delays. The company has set May 31 as a deadline for getting those guarantees.

Watch below: Federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh weighs in on the trade dispute between Alberta and B.C.

Singh won’t respond to Notley’s comment that he was wrong about Kinder Morgan

Notley has argued that the lack of a pipeline is taking $40 million a day out of the Canadian economy.

Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister didn’t express his direct support for the pipeline, but said free trade between the provinces is important.

“We’ve got to get some of these 150-year-old issues dealt with and sooner rather than later,” he said. “We are taking money off the kitchen tables of Canadians every single day because we are not working effectively together as premiers.

Watch below: Pipeline politics are front and centre in several parts of the country Wednesday. In Ottawa, supporters are calling on the federal government for action. Julia Wong explains.