The conservative prime minister of a Canadian province said she will hold a referendum on separation from the country if a citizen-led petition reaches the required threshold.
Concretely, Danielle Smith, from the United Conservative Party, said that even though she does not personally support the possibility, she will accept the "judgement" of the population.
"Should Ottawa, for whatever reason, continue to attack our province as they have done over the last decade, ultimately that will be for Albertans to decide," Smith added, in reference to the national government led by the Liberal Party for three terms, now a fourth after Mark Carney's victory in April.
The Associated Press detailed that Smith's government recently introduced a bill that would reduce the threshold needed to catalyze a referendum. Should it pass, it would need to be signed by 10% of eligible voters in the latest general election, compared to the previous 20%. Organizers would also get 120 days to collect the signatures rather than 90.
The outlet added that Smith's government accused previous government of hampering the province's ability to produce and export oil, costing Alberta billions of dollars. "We just want to be free to develop and export that incredible wealth of resources we have. Freedom to choose how we provide health care, education and other needed social services to our people, even if it's done differently than what Ottawa has in mind," she said.
Smith said she has met with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and he had "some promising to say about changing the direction of his government anti-resources policies."
The development comes as U.S. President Donald Trump has been expressing intention to annex Canada. It is unclear whether the province would seek to join the U.S. following a separation from the country, but Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre had rejected annexation prior to the election. The party dropped significantly in the polls following Trump's election and rhetoric.
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