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- Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is urging Ottawa and Washington to return to the negotiating table after trade talks collapsed and the US imposed new 50% tariffs on a range of Canadian exports. Smith said the terms proposed by American negotiators were too costly for Canada to accept, but warned that an escalating tariff war would also hurt businesses and consumers on both sides of the border. She expressed concern about Canada’s planned retaliatory tariffs, particularly their potential impact on farmers, manufacturers and small businesses that rely on American imports. While Alberta’s oil and natural gas exports are expected to be less affected, industries such as furniture manufacturing and honey production could face significant challenges. Smith said Alberta’s cabinet will meet Tuesday to review the new trade measures, federal relief plans and the province’s next steps.
- Premier Danielle Smith has called a by-election in the southern Calgary riding of Calgary-Shaw for September 14th. The seat has been vacant since May, when former cabinet minister Rebecca Schulz resigned and later became an executive with oil and gas producer Whitecap Resources. Four candidates have so far said they intend to run: Mike Derry for the UCP, Kyle Campbell for the NDP, Alberta Liberal Party Leader John Roggeveen, and Kyle Joseph, who is seeking the nomination for the new Progressive Tory Party founded by former UCP cabinet minister Peter Guthrie. Nominations close on Thursday. The riding has historically voted conservative, with the NDP winning it only once, in 2015, but some political observers see the vote as a bellwether for next year's provincial election, coming just five weeks before October's referendum.
- The provincial government is delaying new rules restricting which flags schools can fly, a requirement to play the Canadian national anthem weekly, and a change that would give Education and Childcare Minister Demetrios Nicolaides the power to name or rename public schools. The changes, part of an omnibus education bill the Legislature approved in the spring, were to take effect on September 1st to coincide with the start of the school year. The incoming law permits only Canadian and Alberta flags on school grounds, though Nicolaides has said schools will also be allowed to fly the Franco-Albertan flag. Alberta Teachers' Association president Jason Schilling said teachers' biggest questions were about whether Pride, Metis, and francophone flags could still be displayed in classrooms. The ministry says it remains committed to implementing the changes and is taking a thoughtful and measured approach, while other parts of the bill, including a new student code of conduct and digital provincial exams, are still set to take effect September 1st.
- Premier Danielle Smith says a binding referendum on Alberta independence would need to be held in spring 2027 if Albertans vote in October for her government to pursue one. Speaking to UCP members at a town hall in Lethbridge last Tuesday, Smith said the question would have to be settled before the next election. October's referendum will ask Albertans whether they want to remain in Canada or have the government begin pursuing the legal path toward a binding vote. Smith said fulfilling the government's duty to consult First Nations would take at least two and a half months, after which the federal government would need to approve the referendum question and ensure it complies with the Clarity Act. In May, a court quashed Stay Free Alberta's petition for a binding referendum, ruling that the province and Elections Alberta had failed to consult First Nations and other groups, and both the group and the government are appealing. Smith's timeline would put a binding vote in March or April.
- The Alberta Utilities Commission has denied an application from Synapse Real Estate Corp. to build a natural gas power plant that would have powered a massive data centre complex in the town of Olds. The company proposed a 10-building campus with 1.4 gigawatts of power generation, plus 1.8 gigawatts of emergency and backup diesel generation. In a decision published last Monday, the commission said the project was too close to the surrounding community, noting that Synapse itself reported more than 700 residences within 800 meters of the site. The proceeding drew applications from about 1,500 parties wanting to participate in hearings, with standing granted to more than 900, compared to a few hundred in typical cases. The office of Affordability and Utilities Minister RJ Sigurdson said decisions like this prove that the province's framework is working and that its regulatory bodies are protecting the interests of Albertans and their communities.