Alberta Premier Danielle Smith suggests premiers start constitutional talks

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says it could be time for premiers to hold another constitutional convention.

At the province's first Alberta Next panel town hall meeting in Red Deer Tuesday evening, the premier gauged the crowd's appetite for getting other premiers together in a room to discuss reopening the constitution.

"There is a real appetite to fix some of these things that are just foundational," Smith said near the end of the meeting.

Canada hasn't engaged in formal constitutional negotiations since 1992, when the premiers and then-Prime Minister Brian Mulroney failed to get Quebec to sign on to the 1982 constitution in the Charlottetown Accord negotiations.

The risk of reopening the constitution, Smith said, is that other provinces could attempt to include changes that Albertans may not want.

In a conference hall in Red Deer's Westerner Park, a panel of 16 politicians, business leaders, medical professionals and others sat before six Alberta flags, hearing ideas, questions and comments from a crowd of at least 400 people.

Up for discussion at the town halls are the potential merits and drawbacks of creating a provincial police service, a provincial pension plan, and assuming more provincial responsibility for tax collection.

Organizers showed a series of videos asking attendees questions, such as considering changes to federal transfer arrangements — including equalization — changes to constitutional powers, and potentially withholding social benefits from some immigrants.

Smith said the number of sheriffs working in policing roles for a new provincial police service could double in size in the near future.

Event emcee and premier's office staffer Bruce McAllister also held impromptu straw polls, asking attendees to raise their hands and hold them up if they supported creating an Alberta pension plan or an Alberta provincial police service.

Roughly 80 per cent of the people attending raised their hands in support of both.

Several residents, who said they came from Red Deer, Trochu, Sylvan Lake, Stettler and beyond, implored elected officials to act upon the proposals, adding that the government doesn't need to hold referenda to make a decision.

Alberta law would require the government to hold a referendum before giving notice to pull out of the Canada Pension Plan (CPP).

A minority of attendees complained about the panel's videos and online surveys, saying the information is biased in favour of acting on the proposals, blames Ottawa for provincial problems, and fails to consider the cost of such decisions.