National

Smith, Alberta Next panel begin town hall series to hear grievances about Ottawa

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 15 Jul, 2025 11:05 AM

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and a hand-picked panel are set to hold the first in a series of town halls to address public concerns with the federal government.

Some 650 people are expected at today's event in Red Deer as Smith and the 15 other members of the Alberta Next panel hear about grievances inspiring separatist sentiment in the province.

The government is dedicating time at the event to several strategies it's pitching to wrest more control from the federal government, including pulling out of the Canada Pension Plan and withholding social services from some immigrants.

There will also be an open question-and-answer period.

Smith and panel members are set to hear feedback in Edmonton on Wednesday.

The premier has said the panel will recommend ideas and policy proposals for a referendum after the town halls wrap up in October.

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Todd Korol

Prev Next

MORE National ARTICLES

3 charged in illicit drug lab

Three men have been charged after a Vancouver Police investigation into an illicit drug lab that was producing fentanyl and other deadly street drugs. Police say the 14-month investigation targeted a group that was manufacturing and trafficking illicit drugs at various locations throughout the region.

3 charged in illicit drug lab

B.C. government and social media giants make deal on non-consensual intimate images

The British Columbia government and social media giants have made what they call a "historic collaboration" for youth safety online. A joint statement from Premier David Eby and representatives of Meta, Google, TikTok, X and Snap Inc., the parent of Snapchat, says they met to help young people stay safe online, one of the most important challenges facing families, government and companies.

B.C. government and social media giants make deal on non-consensual intimate images

Chief says grave search at B.C. residential school brings things 'full circle'

Chief Robert Michell says relief isn't the right word to describe his reaction as the search begins for unmarked graves at the site of a former residential school he attended in northern British Columbia. Michell is the chief of Stellat'en First Nation some 160 kilometres west of Prince George, B.C., and a survivor of the Lejac Indian Residential School where a geophysical survey is underway to find children missing since the facility closed in 1976.

Chief says grave search at B.C. residential school brings things 'full circle'

'The whole country is not on fire': Canadian tourism industry struggles as fires rage

Canada's tourism industry is trying to put on its Sunday best this week, showcasing itself to more than 500 international travel agents and tour operators at the largest annual tourism convention in Canada. But as Rendez-vous Canada is taking place at the Edmonton Convention Centre, one of the biggest challenges Canada's tourism industry is facing is playing out in technicolour just a few hundred kilometres away: wildfires.

'The whole country is not on fire': Canadian tourism industry struggles as fires rage

Spy agency CSIS reveals 24 harassment investigations in annual report

Canada's spy agency has released its annual public report, revealing that it dealt with 24 harassment investigations last year involving complaints by its staff. But the chief human resources officer for the Canadian Security Intelligence Service says the number of investigations shouldn't be used to criticize the agency, and they instead show more employees are placing "faith and confidence in CSIS’ internal grievance process."

Spy agency CSIS reveals 24 harassment investigations in annual report

Three B.C. school districts to launch fully integrated, daylong child care, says Eby

Three school districts in British Columbia will start one-stop child-care programs at local elementary schools this fall. Premier David Eby says offering parents before-and-after-school child care at the same location will save families time and money, create less stress for parents and is an efficient use of school space and resources.