Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has indicated she is willing to engage in discussions with other provincial leaders about potentially amending the Constitution to redefine Indigenous treaty rights. Speaking to reporters on Friday, Smith argued that Section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982, which addresses Crown-Indigenous relations, has been interpreted too broadly by the courts.
Judicial Overreach Alleged
Smith pointed to a recent decision by an Alberta judge who dismissed a petition for a binding referendum, citing the province's failure to fulfill its duty to consult with First Nations. She described this as a clear example of judicial overreach. "I don't even know what the court would expect of a citizen-initiated petition to satisfy a bar to a duty to consult before they can even ask a question," Smith said.
The premier has vowed to appeal the ruling and is calling on her counterparts across Canada to collaborate on preventing similar outcomes in the future. "It needs to be challenged, we're going to and, if there's an appetite among the other premiers to talk about defining that ever further through some kind of constitutional amendment, I'm open to having that conversation," she stated.
Context of Referendum and Indigenous Rights
Smith's comments came after she announced on Thursday evening that an independence-related question would be added to the fall referendum ballot in Alberta. She emphasized that Alberta is not alone in facing challenges from expansive interpretations of treaty rights. "My reading of (Section 35) is that it was never intended to continue being open-ended and redefined by the courts, to create new and increasing rights over and over again with each new decision," Smith explained. "It was never intended to undermine property rights (or) to undermine the ability of provinces to have control over their resources."
Her remarks follow a series of controversial treaty-related rulings in British Columbia, which critics argue have created uncertainty for private landowners and major resource projects. Several candidates in the ongoing B.C. Conservative leadership race have pledged to amend the Constitution to limit Aboriginal title and inferred Indigenous veto powers over resource development. Unlike B.C., Alberta is situated entirely on numbered treaty land.
The Supreme Court of Canada announced this week that it will hear an appeal of a contentious B.C. decision that found the province's mining rules inconsistent with Indigenous rights. Smith plans to raise the issue of Indigenous treaty rights at an upcoming premiers' meeting scheduled for next week.
In October's provincial referendum, Albertans will vote on four constitutional questions, including proposals to give provinces more influence over judicial appointments and to abolish the Senate.
