What’s driving Alberta separatism? Don’t overlook immigration

In all the discussion of Alberta’s meta-referendum on whether to have a referendum on separation, it has gone mostly unremarked that of the 10 questions on the ballot this October, only one is about separation while five are, directly or indirectly, about immigration. This is not an accident, and the two things are more closely connected than the mainstream national commentariat has so far noticed.

A decade (and counting) of inflated permanent immigration, official toleration of illegal migration, and regular abuse of visa programs which are now “temporary” in name only has wrought an extraordinary transformation of Canadian society and especially its urban centres, including in Alberta. As exclusive Hub polling shows, two-thirds of Canadians now say the country has too much immigration.

The force of this change has landed hardest on young Canadians, who in Alberta are the most likely to support separating from Canada. Falling domestic birthrates and soaring migration, which skews young, means the effects of Liberal immigration policy are most obvious in our schools and universities, in the housing and job markets where younger Canadians have to compete with foreign students and “temporary” workers, and in the difficulty families have finding a GP or accessing emergency room care with a sick child.

What does this have to do with Alberta separation?

Alberta separatism is a story that’s not going away, at least not until the referendum (on a referendum) in October. If you listen closely to what Albertans, particularly young Albertans, are actually saying, you’ll find a frequently overlooked factor driving the independence sentiment: immigration. Anxieties about the direction of the country and, in particular, the rapid population increases of the past decade are leading some Albertans to the conclusion that if they can’t save Canada, they can at least try to save their province by breaking off on their own.

Two-thirds of Canadians now say the country has too much immigration.

18 percent gap between young people who think the country is on the right track (31 percent) versus older Canadians (49 percent).

Almost 40 percent of younger voters are not willing to say that Alberta should remain in Canada.

How does immigration policy influence Alberta's push for separation?

What role do young voters play in the Alberta separation movement?

What steps could the federal government take to address Alberta's concerns?