With less than two weeks to go before Albertans vote on whether it’s time to quit Confederation, Canada’s defence minister came to Alberta on Wednesday to highlight the billions of military dollars being spent in the Prairie province.
David McGuinty, with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith standing beside him, reiterated that Ottawa is investing $8 billion in ongoing military projects in the province.
He said when the province joined Confederation in 1905, it was a choice that has been renewed across generations through what Albertans have done for the country.
McGuinty said in an increasingly dangerous and divided world, it’s the current generation’s responsibility to leave Canada stronger than before and Alberta will help lead the way.
“Confederation was not an accident,” McGuinty told the crowd assembled in a training facility at Canadian Forces Base Edmonton.
“It’s a bargain of reciprocity, and that bargain is tested most profoundly when the country is called to defend itself.”
Smith said the funding bolsters Alberta’s place at the forefront of defence, but agreed the announcement was also about showing that her province and Ottawa can work together.
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“I think it’s both,” she said.
“Hopefully these kinds of announcements will give people more and more confidence to vote to remain on Oct. 19.”
On that day, she is putting 10 questions to voters in the referendum. They include proposals on immigration and constitutional reform, but the key question is whether the province should stay in Canada or hold a second, binding referendum on leaving the country.
Smith said her government and Ottawa have been collaborating “for some time” to leverage existing military assets in Alberta in order to help meet Ottawa’s national target of spending five per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product on defence by 2035.
McGuinty said the announcement wasn’t random and there’s an urgency to building up the armed forces.
“This is the execution of a plan that we’ve been devising and working on for some time.”
McGuinty highlighted that Alberta is receiving $8 billion in ongoing spending across multiple projects, including $550 million to establish the western operating base for the Royal Canadian Air Force’s CC-330 Husky fleet.
Nearly $4 billion will go to support fighter capabilities at the Cold Lake base, and over $580 million will be spent over three years for maintenance and repairs across military bases in Alberta.
“We’re not simply rebuilding bases,” he said.
“We’re rebuilding Canadian military power — hard power.”
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