Chamber president says separation talk an economical risk but doesn’t object
Chamber president says separation talk an economical risk but doesn’t object
Chamber president says eparation talk an economical risk but doesn’t object
By ZOE MASON on May 29, 2026.
Business leaders across the province are concerned that a five-month campaign on separation will have a chilling effect on Alberta’s investment climate.
President of the Southeast Alberta Chamber of Commerce Aaron Fleming says he doubts separation would leave Alberta in a better economic position. Still, he says he does not object to the referendum process.
“I probably say the same thing as many chambers, which is that separation is clearly not the right answer. Having said that, if there are people that think we don’t have a fair shake, put it on the ballot, and at least get an answer on it.”
That said, he says evidence that the separation question is casting a shadow over business is difficult to ignore.
“In my day-to-day business it comes up often in conversation. So people are feeling the impact, whether that’s just in conversation or whether it’s something that’s actually already made a financial impact,” Fleming said.
Chambers of commerce across the province have been united in expressing concern that referendum debate will damage the province’s economy, and reduce the likelihood of advancement on major projects like a pipeline the Alberta government aims to propose by July 1.
In a March survey conducted by the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, nearly half of Calgary businesses said talk of separation was having a negative impact on the provincial economy. Twenty-eight per cent of respondents said it was already having an effect on business operations, with 88 per cent describing that impact as negative.
In a statement released after last week’s announcement, Calgary chamber president and CEO Deborah Yedlin said her organization was deeply concerned by the advancement of a separation question.
“This reality is straightforward: people, businesses, capital and opportunity will leave our province – and never come back,” she said.
Yedlin said adverse effects of separation debate are immediate, whether separation proceeds or not.
“At a time when businesses are already navigating a volatile economic environment, introducing this question creates further instability – precisely when certainty and investor confidence are most critical, particularly given the current geopolitical context.”
The Calgary chamber welcomed the recent pipeline deal, and Yedlin pointed to it as evidence of progress on both collaboration with Ottawa and expansion in oil and gas development.
CEO of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, Doug Griffiths, was blunt in his assessment of the referendum question, which he fears could stunt the Alberta economy.
“Uncertainty is our real enemy, not Ottawa,” he said. “When investors see political instability, they move capital elsewhere. And it moves elsewhere, fast.”
Griffiths said in a March statement more than 700 companies relocated head offices out of Quebec after its flirtation with separation, and GDP growth in the province lagged behind the rest of the country for decades to follow.
He also fears it would stop any pipeline project in its tracks.
“We already struggle to secure pipeline rights-of-way within Canada. Imagine negotiating cross-border infrastructure while embroiled in constitutional separation talks. Far from giving Alberta leverage, separatism would isolate our energy sector, raise borrowing costs and shrink our markets.”
Fleming says he sympathizes with frustrations expressed by separatists about federal policy they say has stifled investment in the province, particularly in oil and gas. But he sees discourse on separation exchanged between political leaders as harmful.
He encourages elected officials on both sides of the debate to clarify shared support for a united Canada.
In February, Fleming moderated a discussion with Premier Danielle Smith and Cypress-Medicine Hat MLA Justin Wright at a constituency town hall event in Medicine Hat. The first question he posed was whether they supported separation from Canada. Both Smith and Wright said they supported Alberta remaining within Canada.
“The reason why I wanted to get that answer was because those answers are the ones that create unity,” he said. “The UCP and the NDP can work together on that. Instead of raising pitchforks, Albertan against Albertan, they can show strength and unity together.”
Mayor Linnsie Clark did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.