‘Unhelpful,’ ‘Unnecessary’: Canada’s Provinces Reject Trudeau’s Emergency Powers
by John Hayward National Security Deputy Editor
Several Canadian provincial executives resisted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s invocation of emergency powers on Monday to shut down the Freedom Convoy protests against vaccine mandates.
“I am concerned that there’s a certain kind of person who will hear if the federal government proceeds with this, who will be further enflamed, and that could lead to a prolongation of some of these protests,” Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said on Monday.
“The view I have, which I conveyed to the prime minister during the forum of first ministers this morning, is that this is not necessary, at least for an Alberta context,” Kenney told reporters.
Kenney stressed that he believes provincial officials already have the powers needed to handle protesters who break the law. He mused several times during press conferences on Monday that unnecessary federal overreach could compromise the authority of provincial governments and further inflame public tensions.
“I think at this point, for the federal government to reach in over top of us, without offering anything in particular, would frankly be unhelpful. I think we need to find ways to effectively enforce without escalating the situation,” he said.
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe also said his administration “does not support the Trudeau government invoking the Emergencies Act.”