Alberta
Senate Reform needed sooner than later for the sake of national unity
Article submitted by Project Confederation
Real Equality For Provinces
Last week I wrote to you all about how some provinces are more equal than others when it comes to seats in the House of Commons.
You can refer back to last week’s email for the full details, but here’s a quick summary:
In theory, seats are distributed across the country based on the populations of the provinces but, in practice, a number of provinces receive “bonus” seats to make things “fairer” for them.
Quebec gets 6 bonus seats, while some of the smaller provinces receive a few too, and once all the political favours are handed out, at the extreme end of things, we end up with Prince Edward Island having one seat per 40,000 voters, while Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario have one seat per 120,000.
Despite this, Quebec politicians want Quebec to not lose seats when the re-calculation of population is done and, in fact, the Bloc Quebecois has asked for a guarantee that Quebec will have at least 25% of the seats in the House of Commons, no matter their population.
The debate over seats in the House of Commons exposes a fatal structural deficiency in confederation, where the east demand to be able to maintain the power they hold, despite the fact that the west’s population has grown at a much faster rate.
Clearly, they’re not actually interested in democracy, they’re interested in power, but despite all this, Quebec’s position does actually contain a nugget of validity – yes, really!
One of Quebec’s primary concerns is to protect itself from overreach by the federal government in Ottawa, and on that point, Alberta agrees (even if we’d do far different things if we were left alone by Ottawa).
But the place to protect provincial rights is the Senate, not the House of Commons.
The House of Commons represents the people, and so should have seats distributed evenly by population, so every Canadian has an equal say.
The Senate should represent the provinces, and so should have seats distributed evenly by province, so every province has an equal say.
Instead, Senate seats are currently assigned on a regional basis:
- 24 seats for Ontario
- 24 seats for Quebec
- 24 seats for the Maritime provinces
- 24 seats for the Western provinces
- 6 seats for Newfoundland and Labrador
- 3 seats for the territories (1 each)
Obviously, this distribution is based on politics not on fairness, and if we ever want a Senate that can act as a real check on the power of the federal government on behalf of the provinces, then the seats must be distributed evenly.
Earlier today, federal Conservative Party leadership candidate Pierre Poilievre said that he supports provinces electing Senators and that, as Prime Minister, he would appoint Senators elected by provinces, rather than appoint political friends and allies as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has done up until now.
But Poilievre also said that Senate reform was unlikely as, in order to achieve Senate reform:
“We’d have to open the constitution, which would begin a whole new can of worms about every other grievance that people have with the constitutional structure of the nation.”
Poilievre is right that Senate reform would require opening up the constitution, but this doesn’t mean that we should shy away from doing it.
It’s long overdue for Canada to make significant changes to update an institution that has a fundamental bias against western Canada, and one of those changes must be reforming the Senate into an equal, elected, and effective Triple-E Senate.
Elmer MacKay once said:
“If we give the centre of our country superior status to the rest, how will we ever change it? It will be very difficult and may destroy us one way or another, because although we are proud Canadians, we have a strong attachment and loyalty to our provinces.”
This is exactly why provincial equality must be respected in the governance structure of Canada, before national division erodes to the point of no return.
An elected Senate with effective powers and an equal number of Senators per province is the key to preventing this erosion.
It’s time to renew the conversation, re-open the constitution, and restore balance to confederation.
Regards,
The Project Confederation Team
PS: Project Confederation doesn’t accept any government funding and never will. We think you should be free to choose, for yourself, which organizations to support. If you’re in a position to contribute financially to our important work, you can make a donation here.
Alberta’s government is engaging with Albertans on increasing speed limits on rural highways.
Starting Nov. 7, Albertans can share their views on modernizing speed limits on divided highways through an online survey running until Dec. 12. The survey will ask how Albertans view raising the speed limit by 10 km/h on various highways from 110 km/h to 120 km/h.
“Alberta’s government is investigating how to safely increase speed limits on divided highways, and if Albertans support increasing speed limits. We are investing more than $1.5 billion this year alone to improve highway safety and upgrade infrastructure across the province. We want Albertans to be able to drive the speed limit that the highways are designed for. Modern vehicles combined with public awareness mean we can explore higher speed limits.”
The survey will provide Albertans with the opportunity to provide input on which highways they would prioritize having a speed limit increase, their views on restricting commercial trucks from using the far-left lane on highways with three or more lanes and any other feedback that would improve driving experiences on provincial highways.
Following a review of the survey results, Alberta’s government plans to conduct a mini-trial of a 120 km/h speed limit to assess the impacts of higher speed limits on divided highways. The trial will include strong monitoring to assess driving behaviour.
Alberta’s government reminds motorists to slow down and drive to the conditions. Speed limits are set for ideal conditions. When roads are wet, icy or when there is reduced visibility, motorists should slow down.
Quick facts
- Alberta’s provincial highway network includes more than 64,000 lane kilometres of highways, about 11,700 lane kilometres of which are divided.
- The posted speed limits of Alberta’s divided highways range from 100 to 110 km/h, although the posted speed limits on segments passing through cities, towns and First Nation lands can be as low as 50 km/h due to factors such as signalized intersections, pedestrians and local access.
Related information
- The survey is available online.
A new Class Size and Complexity Cabinet Committee has been struck to address classroom challenges.
Taking action on class size and complexity
Classrooms in Alberta continue to grow and are becoming increasingly complex, and immediate action is needed to address these issues in the public education system. To meet these issues head on, the Class Size and Complexity Cabinet Committee has been created. The cabinet committee will help guide government policy and deploy resources to deal with class sizes and classroom complexity.
“We are committed to providing world-class education, and we’re building schools and funding education at a rate unprecedented in this province. This committee will help us address the concerns of teachers, parents and students around class sizes and complexity.”
Throughout November, Alberta’s government will continue work with school boards to collect data on class sizes and classroom composition. The cabinet committee will use this data to direct resources to the classrooms that need it the most. Starting in January, this data will be made available and released annually.
The Class Size and Complexity Cabinet Committee will be co-chaired by the Premier of Alberta and the Minister of Education and Childcare. It will also include non-voting members representing school boards, administrators and a teacher representative of the ATA. The committee will also hear from school boards, academic experts, teachers, educational assistants, complex needs specialists and parents to inform its decisions and guide this vital work.
“We heard teacher concerns, and we are providing solutions. The Class Size and Complexity Cabinet Committee will help us take immediate action and ensure teachers and students are given the support they need to succeed.”
In June 2025, Alberta’s government established the Aggression and Complexity in Schools Action Team to provide advice on addressing classroom complexity. The report has been received and will be released soon. Over the coming months, the cabinet committee will start rolling out solutions informed by the action team’s recommendations. In addition, the committee will guide the creation of a new inclusive education policy framework.
“The work of this committee will support teachers in responding to the growing complexity in our classrooms. We will ensure that the voices of the contributors to the initial work guide
solutions that truly improve the educational experience for students and the educators who serve them.”
“I appreciate the government’s recognition of the impact of classroom complexity and their commitment to working collaboratively for improvement. Supporting teachers ultimately improves classroom conditions and student outcomes.”
Using data collected, this cabinet committee will also guide Alberta’s government in executing its commitment to hire 3,000 new teachers and 1,500 new educational assistants over the next three years. They will also assist in identifying and prioritizing where new schools and modulars should be built, advancing the government’s commitment to invest $8.6 billion to build 130 new schools, and provide 109 modular classrooms in the growing communities that need them urgently.
Quick facts
- Members of the Class Size and Complexity Cabinet Committee include:
- Danielle Smith, Premier of Alberta
- Demetrios Nicolaides, Minister of Education and Childcare
- Jason Nixon, Minister of Assisted Living and Social Services
- Rick Wilson, Minister of Mental Health and Addiction
- Searle Turton, Minister of Child and Family Services
- Lynnette Anderson, chief superintendent, Edmonton Catholic Schools
- Nicole Buchanan, chair, Red Deer Public Schools
- Marilyn Dennis, former president of Alberta School Boards Association
- Mike McMann, superintendent, Fort Vermilion Schools and President, College of Alberta School Superintendents
- Joanne Pitman, chief superintendent, Calgary Board of Education
- Dr. Elissa Corsi, Alberta Teachers’ Association
- Only Cabinet members are voting members. Additional guests will be invited to attend and share their expertise at the discretion of the chairs.
- School boards will be required to submit data on Alberta classrooms by Nov. 24.
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