Canada's Alberta takes risky separatism gamble by adding question to referendum
Alberta's Premier Danielle Smith has added a question about secession to an upcoming referendum, prompting warnings from Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. Carney described the move as a 'very dangerous bluff,' drawing parallels to the Brexit experience. The debate has intensified following a court ruling that rejected a citizen petition for a direct independence referendum due to lack of consultation with Indigenous peoples.
- ▪Danielle Smith, the Premier of Alberta, announced a referendum question on secession.
- ▪Prime Minister Mark Carney warned that this move could have serious consequences, likening it to Brexit.
- ▪A judge previously rejected a petition for a direct referendum on independence due to irregularities in the process.
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Danielle Smith, the premier of Alberta, during a press conference in Calgary (Alberta), on May 22, 2026. TODD KOROL/REUTERS Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Monday, May 25, warned Alberta's government against holding a referendum on the province's future within Canada, denouncing it as "a very dangerous bluff." Carney, who served as governor of the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020, even invoked the specter of Brexit to highlight the potential consequences of such a vote. "I saw firsthand what happened in the United Kingdom. (…) And they're still, 10 years later, trying to undo what people didn't think they were voting for but what they ended up having," he said.
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