Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi stated, “This referendum violates treaty rights, it would cost Albertans hundreds of millions of dollars and is now tied to serious public safety concerns thanks to the largest data breach in Alberta’s history.”

A referendum on independence does not violate treaty rights. Provinces have the right to hold independence referendums as per the Clarity Act and the Supreme Court reference case of 1998. The recent ruling from King’s bench Justice Leonard only applied to the process of petitioning for a referendum and indigenous consultation required within that process.

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A referendum in Alberta will not cost anything close to hundreds of millions of dollars. The Alberta government already set aside $20 million for Elections Alberta to hold a referendum this fall on nine questions.

The cost to add another question to the ballot would be negligible. In 2021, Senate nominations and two referenda questions were added to the ballot during municipal elections at a cost of $1.4 million.

The data breach issue only applies to the Centurion Project and it’s under investigation. It has nothing to do with a referendum process and holding a referendum won’t impact public safety. It’s like saying we could no longer safely hold general elections because a group may have gotten its hands on an electors list.

Accept the court’s decision.

Nobody is above the law – certainly not this.