Defence minister touts $8B military spending in Alberta ahead of referendum
The federal government is investing billions in Alberta military projects as the province prepares to vote on its future in Canada.
EDMONTON — Canada's defence minister came to Alberta Wednesday to highlight billions in military spending there, with less than two weeks before Albertans vote on whether it's time to quit Confederation.
David McGuinty, with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith standing beside him, reiterated that Ottawa is investing $8 billion in ongoing military projects in the province.
"Confederation was not an accident," McGuinty told the crowd assembled in a training facility at Canadian Forces Base Edmonton.
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"It's a bargain of reciprocity, and that bargain is tested most profoundly when the country is called to defend itself."
Smith said the funding bolsters Alberta's place at the forefront of defence, but agreed the announcement was also about showing that her province and Ottawa can work together.
"Hopefully these kinds of announcements will give people more and more confidence to vote to remain on Oct. 19," Smith said.
On that day, she is putting 10 questions to voters in the referendum. They include proposals on immigration and constitutional reform, but the key question is whether the province should stay in Canada or hold a second, binding referendum on leaving the country.
McGuinty said when the province joined Confederation in 1905, it was a choice that has been renewed across generations through what Albertans have done for the country.
He said in an increasingly dangerous and divided world, it's the current generation's responsibility to leave Canada stronger than before and Alberta will help lead the way.
Smith said her government and Ottawa have been collaborating "for some time" to leverage existing military assets in Alberta in order to help meet Ottawa's national target of spending five per cent of Canada's gross domestic product on defence by 2035.
McGuinty said the announcement wasn't random and there's an urgency to building up the armed forces.
"This is the execution of a plan that we've been devising and working on for some time," he said.
McGuinty highlighted that Alberta is receiving $8 billion in ongoing spending across multiple projects, including $550 million to establish the western operating base for the Royal Canadian Air Force's CC-330 Husky fleet.
Nearly $4 billion will go to support fighter capabilities at the Cold Lake base, and over $580 million will be spent over three years for maintenance and repairs across military bases in Alberta.
"We're not simply rebuilding bases," he said. "We're rebuilding Canadian military power, hard power."
McGuinty, with Smith beside him at the base, said the province is a national reminder on how to think big and build big.
He also said Confederation is a national bargain renewed through generations by what Canadians do for one another, particularly in wartime.
The visit comes as the federal government seeks to accelerate military procurement. Nosy Mag reported this month that Ottawa has tabled a bill to make the defence procurement agency a Crown corporation to speed up equipment purchases.
With files from The Canadian Press, CBC News and Global News