YELLOWKNIFE, N.W.T. — Premiers of the Western provinces and territories identified trade, economic corridors, energy security and the Arctic as shared priorities to emerge from their conference in Yellowknife Thursday.
The Western Premiers conference wrapped up their two days of meetings Thursday. Premier Scott Moe was there representing Saskatchewan, as were Danielle Smith of Alberta, Wab Kinew of Manitoba, David Eby of British Columbia, P.J. Akeeagok of Nunavut, Ranj Pillai of the Yukon, and the host R.J. Simpson of Northwest Territories.
At the end of the two days the Western Premiers issued a communique outlining their priorities. Those included international trade and tariffs, economic corridors, energy security and exports, Arctic security and sovereignty, public safety, emergency preparedness, and housing.
On international trade the Premiers stated they are committed to Team Canada’s collaborative approach to respond to U.S. tariffs. They called on the federal government to “”continue standing up for workers and communities negatively impacted by ongoing trade disputes” as well as reassess Canada’s retaliatory tariffs with respect to realized impacts on Canadians, ensure tariff revenues are urgently directed to impacted businesses and workers, and continue to work with likeminded partners to expand mutually beneficial trading relationships; and work with provinces and territories to diversify export markets and increase internal trade.
The Premiers also called on the federal government to “prioritize work towards the removal of Chinese tariffs.” While they were “pleased to see the Prime Minister’s commitment to assist the seafood sector impacted by Chinese tariffs,” they requested “similar supports be extended to the canola and pork sectors affected by Chinese measures, as well as the softwood sector impacted by U.S. duties.”
On economic corridors, energy security and project approvals, the Premiers said they signed a Memorandum of Understanding “to work together towards the identification, planning, and development of enhanced economic corridors in the West.” They also called for the Prime Minister’s support for development of an economic corridor connecting ports on the northwest coast and Hudson’s Bay, ultimately reaching Grays Bay.
On Arctic security, the premiers stated they were “pleased to hear the Prime Minister’s commitment to the Arctic Security Corridor. They committed to continued interprovincial/territorial and federal engagement and also called on the Feds to accelerate progress to reach the NATO defence spending target of two per cent of GDP.
Western Premiers also talked about emergency preparedness and the “importance of a proactive approach to disaster management, focusing on long-term preparedness, climate change adaptation and mitigation, and enhancing community resilience through planning, coordination, and information sharing during emergencies.” They reaffirmed their commitment to work to “support communities, ensuring adequate resources are available to keep people safe and minimize threats to homes and livelihoods.”
On housing, Premiers called on the Feds to begin discussions to refresh the National Housing Strategy framework, and also to work closely with provinces and territories to meet local housing priorities. And on public safety, Premiers discussed the “importance of addressing drug trafficking, particularly related to fentanyl and methamphetamines, and bail reform to better support public safety and public confidence in the justice system.”
One topic not addressed directly in the communique, but clearly the elephant in the room, was the issue of western separatism. Both Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith spoke on that issue to reporters and made it known that action on the priorities outlined in their communique would go a long way towards quelling those sentiments.
“I think in fact if Prime Minister Mark Carney acts on the ideas in our communique today, that it would take the wind right out of any effort,” said Premier Smith.
“The frustration that Alberta has has been that it's been a lot easier to do business with our southern neighbour than it's been to do business across the country. And what I've seen since November is a real spirit of esprit de corps among the Premiers, talking about how we can help each other, how we can trade with each other, how we can work together to create new economic corridors, we can all get our various products to markets and if we can find some support from the federal government on that, I think that's all that the people of Alberta have been looking for. “
“There is a feeling, and I'll speak from the perspective of Saskatchewan just briefly at the beginning, there is a feeling of alienation among many people in the province where I live,” said Premier Moe.
“However, there is also a strong affinity to, as Premier Smith had said, to Saskatchewan being very much a contributing province to within a united nation of Canada. And I think that really ties into some of the work that we see in the communique here today.”
Moe pointed to some of the conversations around infrastructure, as well as opening up the New West Partnership not only to other provinces but territories as well.
He also found important the “conversation around port-to-port access and really creating access for the European and Asian markets, for a significant portion of Canadian goods” as well.
“Therein lies, I think, the opportunity for each of us as Canadians is, you know, to work together to enhance the economic opportunities that we have through discussions just like what happened here today.”
British Columbia Premier David Eby said the feeling he had around the table “is that all the Premiers recognize that this is the moment for Western Canada, that we are going to be the engine that drives the Canadian economy for the foreseeable future, and that if we're going to realize our potential, if we're going to ensure that we realize the vision, and the responsibility, frankly, to all Canadians that comes with that series of opportunities that are in front of us right now, we have to work together.
“And there is no worse time for us to get dragged into conversations about splitting up the country or this kind of thing, than right now, when in front of us is all this amazing opportunity.”
