Rob Breakenridge Show

The separatist Parti Québécois are back in power in Quebec — just as Albertans are set to vote on their own province’s future within Canada. In this episode of the Rob Breakenridge Show, we’re joined by Globe & Mail columnist Andrew Coyne for a closer look at the results in Quebec, the upcoming Alberta referendum, and what it all means for Canada.

We start with a conversation about what happened in Quebec, where the PQ managed to form a minority government with just 28 per cent of the vote. While that suggests that, for now, support for Quebec independence remains low, Coyne warns against complacency, pointing to potential flashpoints over immigration, secularism and the constitution.

We’ll then turn our attention to what’s happening in Alberta and what we might expect to see on October 19th. We’ll get Coyne’s thoughts on the reports of controversial outreach by Alberta separatists to U.S. officials, the political impact of Donald Trump on Canadian unity, and the potential consequences of this referendum.

In this episode, a closer look at this week’s announcement regarding the proposed new west coast pipeline (now known as Pacific Link) - the potential impact this project could have, and whether it symbolizes a shift in Canada’s approach to building major projects and attracting investment.

Up first, a conversation with Deborah Yedlin, President and CEO of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce. We’ll get the Chamber’s reaction to Ottawa’s move to declare the proposed Pacific Link pipeline as being in the national interest. We’ll also look ahead to the October 19th referendum, and why the business community is worried about the potential for uncertainty around Alberta’s future. The Chamber has released a new report conducted by noted economist Trevor Tombe that outlines the potential consequences of Alberta leaving Canada: lost jobs, reduced investment and GDP, major fiscal challenges, and the prospect of higher taxes or deep cuts to public services.

Plus, we’re joined by David Knight Legg, chairman of Elements Capital, former CEO of Invest Alberta, and former principal advisor to Alberta’s premier. We’ll get his take on the significance of the pipeline announcement and what appears to be a growing political consensus around the value and importance of energy production and energy infrastructure. More broadly, we’ll also examine whether finally turning a corner on investment, economic growth, and regulatory certainty. We’ve certainly seen some steps in this direction, but are these initiatives enough to restore confidence in the Canadian economy?

In this episode of the Rob Breakenridge Show: The loss of a supposedly safe UCP riding is a warning sign for Alberta’s governing party, and an indicator of how the government’s referendum strategy is casting a huge shadow on Alberta politics.

With just over a month to go before the vote on Alberta’s future in Canada, the Alberta NDP pulled off a significant upset by prevailing in Monday’s byelection in the riding of Calgary-Shaw.

We’re joined this week by longtime conservative strategist and Lead Not Leave co-founder Ken Boessenkool for a closer look at how the UCP managed to blow this byelection and what it tells us about the state of Alberta’s conservative movement and the political volatility of the upcoming referendum.

Boessenkool argues that Danielle Smith has created a difficult position for herself by allowing separatist politics to dominate Alberta’s political agenda. Instead, Boessenkool makes the case that a conservative government should be focused on taxes, investment, economic growth and making Alberta more competitive — not on possibly leaving Canada. Now, though, the focus must be on winning that referendum.

We’ll also have more details on the new report just released by the Alberta government that examines the significant costs of of separation.

Plus, former prime minister Stephen Harper is emerging as an important voice in the Canada’s economic future and the debate over Alberta’s place in Confederation. We’ll hear what he had to say this week.

In this episode of the Rob Breakenridge Show, a closer look at the two very consequential issues that loom large over both Alberta and the rest of Canada.

First up, we’re joined by Adam Legge, president of the Business Council of Alberta, as we discuss their new “Choose Canada” campaign ahead of the pivotal October 19 referendum. While conceding that Alberta has legitimate grievances with Ottawa, Legge argues that separation would introduce an enormous amount of uncertainty and risk. The campaign also emphasizes that rejecting separation does not equate to an endorsement of Canada’s status quo. We’ll also get his thoughts on the concern and potential impact of the escalating trade war between Canada and the United States.

Plus, are Canada’s counter-tariffs the right response to Donald Trump’s trade war? We’ll hear from Vincent Geloso, senior economist with the Montreal Economic Institute, who makes the case that retaliatory tariffs simply impose additional costs on Canadian businesses and consumers — and risk entrenching protectionist policies long after the current dispute is over.

Geloso’s latest study looks back to the 1930s, when Canada responded aggressively to U.S. protectionism during the Great Depression, which ultimately exacerbated an already bad situation. We’ll look at how Canada can best navigate increasingly hostile U.S. trade policy and how free trade between the two countries got so off course.

In this episode of the Rob Breakenridge Show, a closer look at the debate around Alberta’s future with now less than two months to go before a very consequential October 19th referendum.

We’re joined by Monte Solberg, one of the founders of the group Vote to Stay - Monte, of course, was a cabinet minister under Prime Minister Stephen Harper and a long time Conservatives / Canadian Alliance / Reform M.P. for Southern Alberta.

We’ll find out how and why the group Vote to Stay - which includes other prominent conservatives such as Jason Kenney and Travis Toews - came together in the first place and why the vote on separation is too consequential to leave to chance.

Solberg acknowledges that Alberta separatism is being fuelled by frustration and anger, but warns that breaking up the country could come with enormous economic consequences and political uncertainty. He also points to policy breakthroughs between Ottawa and Alberta as evidence that federalism can still work.

We’ll also look at the Trump factor and how American interest and meddling in the referendum could affect the outcome and the aftermath of the vote.

Plus, what about the risk of complacency on Referendum Day - with numerous polls showing the remain-in-Canada option far ahead of support for separation, coupled with the possibility of long lines and delays on October 19th, could that affect voter turnout?

In this episode of the Rob Breakenridge Show, we’ll take a closer look at how we went from an apparent Canada-US trade deal last week to now what’s being described as a “trade war.”

It’s an ideal opportunity for a conversation with veteran Ottawa political journalist Paul Wells - who, by the way, will be in Calgary on September 28th for the Paul Wells Road Show, featuring - among other guests - Alberta Premier Danielle Smith.

We’ll get some insight on what happened last week, why Prime Minister Mark Carney decided there was no point in making any further concessions, and what Canada’s strategy will be now that these new U.S. tariffs have come into effect. Wells also questions, though, whether Canadians have received a sufficiently detailed explanation from their own government about why the negotiations broke down

We’ll examine some of the other political calculations at play here, including the upcoming Quebec election, Ontario’s auto sector, and the Doug Ford factor. There’s also the response from the Conservatives, and some of the apparent divisions that exist within the opposition.

Wells also has some interesting thoughts on Danielle Smith’s approach to the trade conflict and whether she’s been unfairly criticized for a perceived lack of commitment to a so-called “Team Canada” response.

In this episode of the Rob Breakenridge Show, we’ll dive into the controversy that unfolded in Edmonton this week around an Edmonton Police Service anti-hate campaign. That campaign included a video posted on social media, urging citizens to report instances of hate - even those that are non-criminal in nature.

We’ll speak with Josh Dehaas, litigation director for the Canadian Constitution Foundation. He has some concerns about the blurring of the line between offensive speech and criminal conduct, and the broader implications for free expression in this country. Plus, is this really the best use of police resources right now?

We’ll also look at the debate around gas prices and the impact of government gasoline taxes? A decision looms for the federal government in when and whether to reimpose the federal gasoline excise tax, which they paused for the summer driving season. And the Alberta government has drawn criticism over the decision to leave the provincial gasoline excise tax in place in favour of a $100 rebate.

We’ll hear from Kris Sims, Alberta of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. The CTF this week released their latest annual Gas Tax Honesty Report - and also a new survey which shows pretty clearly what Canadians would like to see on this front.

In this week’s episode of The Rob Breakenridge Show: what air travellers need to know about the potential for huge disruptions, two big takeaways from the latest Danielle Smith-Mark Carney get together, plus - reflections on an emotionally draining two weeks in Calgary and the tragic end to the search for a missing boy.

Up first, a conversation with Dr. Gabor Lukacs, founder and president of Air Passenger Rights. With a strike or lockout looming for flight attendants at WestJet, thousands passengers could potentially be affected by cancelled flights. With all the uncertainty and potential disruption, we’ll find out more about what airline travellers should be doing right now, and what their rights are if indeed their flight is cancelled by the airline. We’ll also get his thoughts on how the rights of airline passengers could stand to be improved.

Also, fresh of the heels of the recent pipeline announcement and the first ministers gathering in Prince Edward Island, Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith were side-by-side for yet another announcement this week in Red Deer. We’ll hear what the prime minister had to say about potentially using oil exports as leverage in response to new U.S. tariffs - something Smith has warned against. Also, we’ll hear what both leaders had to say about the possibility of equalization reform.

Plus, we conclude the show with the tragic news out of Calgary that 11-year-old Parker Wells was found deceased after a two-week community-wide search in Calgary. We’ll look at how this story connected with so many Calgarians, Albertans, and Canadians and also share a touching audio message from Parker’s parents.

Here we go again. Canada finds itself plunged back into trade drama with the United States, as President Donald Trump has announced his intention to place large new tariffs on a number of Canadian goods.

The prime minister hasn’t yet tipped his hand as to Canada’s response, but says his government “will do whatever it takes” and that “everything is on the table.”

In this episode of the Rob Breakenridge Show, we recap the week’s developments and we’re joined by David Clement, Policy Director at the Consumer Choice Center. We’ll get his breakdown of this latest escalation: how bad these new tariffs are, why tariffs are so economically damaging, and why Canada should think twice about retaliating with tariffs of its own.

Clement also offers his critique of what he sees as trade hypocrisy on both sides, including some of Canada’s own protectionist tendencies - especially supply management with both the U.S. and other trading partners have identified as an irritant.

We’ll look at where this is all likely headed, and why Canada need to focus on tearing down internal trade barriers, pursuing new global trade deals, and maintaining a disciplined, unified front.

In this episode of the Rob Breakenridge Show, a look back on a very busy week in Alberta. We start with a re-cap of the string of major announcements from the premier, including more pipeline projects and a major data centre investment in the province. What does this all mean for the economic and political climate in Alberta?

Also, we check back in with Alberta country music artist Corb Lund to get the latest on where things stand with the Water Not Coal movement. Elections Alberta has announced that their analysis suggests that the group’s petition - which aims to ban coal development along the eastern slopes of the Rockies - has fallen just short of the threshold to trigger a referendum. This comes after the premier had already indicated that it would be too late to put the question on the ballot. Lund, though, has some serious questions and concerns about this entire process - we’ll find out more.

Plus, a closer look at the questions that will be on the ballot in the fall - how Albertans are feeling about these issues and what the questions themselves reveal. New polling from the Association for Canadian Studies (ACS) shows that Albertans are expressing their Canadian pride at levels as high or higher than other provinces, which is an interesting backdrop to a question related to separation. A separate ACS poll shows that Albertans - and other Canadians - are supportive of the government’s other questions on immigration and constitutional reform. However, given the wording of the questions and the desired outcomes, it’s less clear where public opinion is really at on these matters. We’ll speak with Jack Jedwab, President and CEO of the Association for Canadian Studies .