“The Alberta Court of Appeal has ruled the federal Impact Assessment Act as unconstitutional.
“This is a historic win for the people of Alberta. The court’s ruling that the federal government does not have constitutional authority to control provinces and territories and the development of our natural resources is a great victory for Alberta and for Canadian federalism.
“Trudeau’s ‘no more pipelines’ law goes against what the framers of our Constitution intended, and is certainly not what provincial governments agreed to on patriation of the Constitution.
“Alberta argued, and the Court of Appeal agreed, that the federal government is needlessly overhauling a regulatory review process that is already one of the world’s best, putting jobs and investment at risk. We want to see investment grow, not driven away by unbalanced, unpredictable new rules for large-scale infrastructure projects.
“In their decision, the Court notes the natural resources belong to the province, not the federal government and that our people lose if those natural resources cannot be developed. Further, today’s decision states the federal government does not have the constitutional right to veto an intra-provincial designated project based on its view of the public interest, not in the interest of the Indigenous entity involved, nor do they have the constitutional rights to appropriate the birthright and economic future of the citizens of a province.
“Alberta stands by the principle that provinces are best situated to make policy decisions for their own unique economies. The Ottawa-knows-best attitude of the federal government disrupts the constitutional balance of our federation, and undermines our right to manage our own affairs – and the Alberta Court of Appeal’s decision is a major step in correcting this trend.
“Alberta’s government will always follow through on our commitment to stand up for Alberta against unjustified intrusion into provincial jurisdiction.”