Saturday, June 20, 2026
ADVT 
National

Immigration, pension: A look at survey questions put forward by Alberta Next panel

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 25 Jun, 2025 10:44 AM
  • Immigration, pension: A look at survey questions put forward by Alberta Next panel

The Alberta Next panel, chaired by Premier Danielle Smith, is holding town halls this summer to get feedback on how the province should stand up to Ottawa while building a "strong and sovereign Alberta within Canada."

Smith has promised a referendum next year on some of the ideas put forward to the panel.

The panel's website launched on Tuesday with surveys on six issues. Before taking each survey, participants must watch a short video.

Here are some of the questions:

Immigration

"Should the provincial government refuse to provide provincial programs to non-citizens and non-permanent residents living in Alberta unless they have been granted an Alberta government-approved immigration permit?"

Constitutional changes

"Should Alberta take a lead role in working with other provinces to pressure the federal government to amend the Canadian constitution to empower and better protect provincial rights?"

Federal transfers and equalization

"Do you agree that the current federal transfer and equalization system is unfair to Alberta?"

"Do you think Alberta should work with other provinces to transfer a larger share of overall taxes from Ottawa to the provinces?"

Provincial police force

"What aspect do you like most about an Alberta Police Service?"

"What concerns you most about shifting from the RCMP to an Alberta Police Service?"

Alberta pension plan

"What potential benefit do you like most about Alberta opting to leave the CPP and create its own Pension Plan?"

"Which risk of opting out of CPP to start an Alberta Pension Plan are you most concerned about? 

Tax collection

This survey had problems displaying questions on the website Tuesday afternoon, but a video beforehand asks Albertans if they would support creating a provincial revenue agency.

It says doing so would require hiring 5,000 staff, cost Alberta at least $750 million per year, and require residents to file provincial and federal taxes separately -- but it would also create jobs and give Alberta more of a say over its tax regime.

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson

 

MORE National ARTICLES

Guilty plea from Vancouver hit and run suspect

Guilty plea from Vancouver hit and run suspect
A man charged in a fatal hit and run in Vancouver last year has pleaded guilty to criminal negligence causing death. Eoghan Byrne was killed on July 19th, 2022 in the Kitsilano neighbourhood in a collision that was captured on surveillance video.  

Guilty plea from Vancouver hit and run suspect

Hundreds of foreign-trained doctors boosting B.C. family medicine: Dix

Hundreds of foreign-trained doctors boosting B.C. family medicine: Dix
British Columbia Health Minister Adrian Dix says almost all of the 666 international medical graduates registered in the province this year are now working as doctors, with more than half in family medicine. Dix's comments come amid ongoing health-care woes including hospital overcrowding and many residents being left without a family doctor.

Hundreds of foreign-trained doctors boosting B.C. family medicine: Dix

Woman, 72, uses shovel to chase naked intruder from her Vancouver home, police say

Woman, 72, uses shovel to chase naked intruder from her Vancouver home, police say
Police say a 72-year-old woman used a shovel to chase a combative and naked man from her Vancouver home on Tuesday night. Vancouver police say in a statement the man entered the home by smashing a window with a pointed metal rod.

Woman, 72, uses shovel to chase naked intruder from her Vancouver home, police say

73-year-old man faces multiple charges after vehicle crashes through dollar store

73-year-old man faces multiple charges after vehicle crashes through dollar store
Mounties in Creston says a 73-year-old man faces multiple charges, including impaired driving, after a vehicle crashed through a dollar store on Monday morning. Police say damage to the store was significant after the vehicle drove through the front window of the Your Dollar Store with More. 

73-year-old man faces multiple charges after vehicle crashes through dollar store

Over 50 arrests in Kelowna retail theft

Over 50 arrests in Kelowna retail theft
Kelowna Mounties say an operation targeting shoplifters over a seven-day period this month resulted in more than 50 arrests. Police say the operation was in response to concerns from Kelowna's retail sector about theft and violence at stores.

Over 50 arrests in Kelowna retail theft

Ties with India appear to have undergone 'a tonal shift': Canada's Trudeau

Ties with India appear to have undergone 'a tonal shift': Canada's Trudeau
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said that Ottawa's relations with New Delhi appear to have undergone "a tonal shift", following US indictment of an Indian national in a plot to kill a Sikh separatist on American soil. The US indictment appears to have convinced the Narendra Modi government to adopt a more sober tone, Trudeau told CBC news channel in a year-end interview.  

Ties with India appear to have undergone 'a tonal shift': Canada's Trudeau