For the second time in a week, Rebel News challenged Premier Danielle Smith on important questions surrounding a new memorandum of understanding signed between Alberta and Ottawa.

The premier and Prime Minister Mark Carney put pen to paper on the agreement following months of negotiations between the federal and provincial governments.

The deal tentatively lays the foundation for new pipeline projects to begin in Alberta and travel to the British Columbia coast — something that has angered B.C. Premier David Eby.

At the United Conservative Party's annual convention over the weekend, Rebel News boss Ezra Levant and Chief Reporter Sheila Gunn Reid attended Smith's press conference and put another series of important questions to the premier. 

“Have you contemplated if Premier Eby and the extremists, and just the cost impositions of this MOU, deter a pipeline from going west,” Levant started, citing the case of Saskatchewan-based potash firm Nutrien, which chose to export through the United States instead of risking backlash in B.C. 

“Would you consider a pipeline going south through the United States or even reigniting the Keystone XL pipeline?” he asked.

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Smith replied she “didn't want to give up on Plan A,” a pipeline to the northern B.C. coast, calling it the project “that should have always been built” and suggesting it would be “the most profitable” development. 

The premier also said a major problem for industry in Canada has been work stoppages, citing labour disputes involving airlines, ports and railways. “We've got to fix that if we're going to be a reliable supplier.”

Sheila Gunn Reid asked Smith about the decision to increase the industrial carbon tax as part of the agreement reached with Ottawa, questioning if this would serve as a deterrent for new projects.

“How do you reconcile that with encouraging pipeline investment to Alberta? Is there a private sector pipeline company that is even floating the notion of investing in Alberta?” asked Sheila.

“We negotiated a decrease to the carbon tax,” responded Smith. “It was slated to go up to $170 by 2030, and we persuaded the prime minister that was going to be crushing to our industry.”

Smith said private companies are “investing in emissions reduction technologies” and that a carbon price was needed “to make that worthwhile.” The premier said the sweet spot was finding “a price that's going to make sure we do not dampen investment” but one that also motivates more “investment in the emissions reduction technology.”

The premier said federal emissions caps and bans on oil tankers deterred companies from investing in the province. With agreements reached in the MOU with Ottawa, Smith said she expects private companies to begin assessing new projects in the near future.