Canada’s Constitution empowers Alberta to demand more

Does Alberta have a claim to greater autonomy? At a time when American influence threatens Canada’s sovereignty, and talk of Albertan separatism grows louder, the question has never been more urgent. But what if, far from being radical, Alberta’s push fits squarely within Canada’s long tradition of responsible government?

In How the West wins: Alberta’s legal pathway to greater power within Canada, Michael Rupert Binnion argues that Alberta has both the authority and the opportunity to lead Canada’s next federal evolution, by exercising the full scope of powers already granted to provinces under the Constitution.

“As Alberta charts a path towards greater autonomy, it is vital to avoid hypotheticals and partisan rhetoric,” notes Binnion. “It must embrace the tools of responsible government not as a protest, but as a principled assertion of its constitutional rights.”

According to Binnion, the case of Quebec shows how Canada’s political evolution has historically expanded self-government through negotiation and precedent rather than rupture. Quebec has long exercised many of the rights Alberta now contemplates, from collecting its own taxes to running a provincial pension plan and controlling immigration policy.

Binnion highlights Canada’s tradition of asymmetrical federalism, which recognizes regional distinctiveness and accommodates Alberta’s call for greater sovereignty. Moreover, this approach is lawful, legitimate, and deeply rooted in Canadian practice.

“Alberta’s path to greater sovereignty is not radical… It echoes Canada’s own history of legal evolution, peaceful negotiation, and regional accommodation,” writes Binnion. “For Alberta, the tools exist. The precedent is clear. The only missing ingredient is political will.”