Smith rejects taxing Alberta oil exports amid U.S. tariff dispute
Speaking in Grande Prairie, Premier Danielle Smith warned that curtailing Alberta energy exports to the U.S. would backfire badly on Canada's economy.
Why it matters
The province's response to U.S. tariffs could shape energy exports, business support measures and interprovincial trade policy affecting Albertans.
Premier Danielle Smith held a press conference in Grande Prairie on Aug. 26 to address the latest round of U.S. tariffs, calling them tragic, unjustified and wholly unnecessary. She rejected calls to impose export taxes or curtail Alberta's oil and gas shipments to the United States as a response.
Smith said such a move would devastate the Canadian economy, threatening the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Albertans and hurting other provinces. She argued the U.S. would retaliate with a 50-100 per cent export tariff on its own oil and natural gas, and that unlike Canada, the U.S. has strategic reserves to keep gasoline prices manageable, while Canada lacks the reserves to quickly supply Ontario and Quebec with fuel.
To support businesses affected by the trade dispute, Smith said her government will launch an online feedback portal, form a new business advisory committee, and convene a cabinet committee co-chaired by Finance Minister Jason Nixon and Jobs, Economy, Trade and Immigration Minister Joseph Schow, with its first meeting set for Aug. 27.
Smith also called on other premiers to adopt a uniform nationwide markup on Canadian alcohol products, pursue new trade partnerships, and approve a pipeline to the west coast. The press conference took place at Northwestern Polytechnic's newly opened Skilled Trades Centre in Grande Prairie.
Compiled by the Alberta Daily Desk — an AI-written summary of reporting from the credited sources below, produced and reviewed under our editorial policy.