'Worse than I've ever seen it': Trudeau must ease 'Wexit' talks with oil commitments, says Alberta think tank

Martha Hall Findlay, president and CEO of Alberta think tank Canada West Foundation, says economic anxiety is driving talk of separation in Alberta, particularly following last week's federal election result.

"The sense of alienation has really been building over the last few years. So the vote was not the cause of it. I think it was in some sense a reflection of it," Hall Findlay, a former Liberal MP and leadership candidate, said Sunday on Cross Country Checkup.

She says Albertans' sense of estrangement from the rest of the country is predicated on the perception the federal government is undermining the province's energy industry in order to move toward environmentally-friendly policies. 

Hall Findlay argues national policies related to oil and gas should balance sustainability targets as well as economic stability in the region. 

"In 2015, there was a lot of talk about: and. We can have environmental sustainability and economic prosperity … and a lot of people want to be able to see that."

Speaking with Checkup host Duncan McCue, Hall Findlay says one of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's key tasks following the election is to unite the country in order to avoid separatism talks.

Here's part of that conversation.

You raise the national unity question. I want to play you a clip from Alberta Premier Jason Kenney. Here's his reaction the day after the election:

If the frustration and alienation in Alberta continues to mount, it will pose a very serious challenge to national unity. — Jason Kenney 

So is that rhetoric, Martha Hall Findlay, or is he exaggerating? How does Jason Kenney benefit from all this talk about separatism and Wexit?

I don't think anybody benefits … I don't know of anybody, and certainly, I take no pleasure in this, but there's no question it's real. There's no question that the frustration is real. 

I've lived in Ontario. I spent a lot of time in Quebec. I now live in Alberta, and I'm old enough to have lived through the challenges that we've had with Quebec separation over the years. 

This is worse than I've ever seen it in the West, no question. But there is a huge opportunity to move this forward. As I said, the frustration has been building over the last few years. 

It is not something that happened because of the election. There is a big opportunity to go back to that "and" discussion. We have to concentrate both on environmental sustainability and economic prosperity. 

What is the main wish list from Alberta that you think Prime Minister Trudeau needs to move on to keep the West happy then in terms of policy?

First and foremost, a recognition of the importance of resources. 

So, yes, the [Trans Mountain] pipeline is really important, but pipelines are somewhat symbolic of the underlying challenge. And that is there has to be a recognition that the oil and gas industry, which, by the way, is working really, really hard in a whole lot of incredible technologies and innovations to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions footprint. Like, there's some really good things happening. 

What would be really key is to say we all need to address these challenges together. We understand that the world demand for oil is continuing to go up and will for quite a while yet. 

We all recognize we need to have a transformation of our economy. Let's figure out how we can actually do that collectively and proactively as opposed to some of the rhetoric. 

But can I push you a little bit on the rhetoric, though, Martha Hall Findlay? On the one hand, Alberta's economy is clearly sputtering. 

But then, on the other hand, the employment rate is still the highest of any province [66.4 per cent for Albertans aged 15 and up vs. a national rate of 62.1]. Albertans have the highest income in the country compared to others. Average wages, they are 15 per cent above [the] national average. 

So do Albertans have as much to complain about as they say they do right now?

That's a great point, and it's something we actually remind people all the time as well. 

The economy is actually pretty good, and the challenge that we have is in relative terms. It has been far, far stronger in times past. 

So people feel hurt not so much relative to other parts of the country or the world, but certainly relative to the prosperity that was being seen. The challenge is the lack of understanding in the rest of the country — that also affects the prosperity of the whole country ...

So it's not just, "Gee, Albertans are not as economically prosperous as they might have been five years ago; they're still doing OK," but it's actually a really important issue for the entire country.

Written by Jason Vermes. Interview produced by Richard Raycraft. This Q&A has been edited for length and clarity.