STATEMENT FROM LET ALBERTA DECIDE CO-LEAD KEITH WILSON, K.C. Albertans should welcome any serious effort to get our energy to world markets. But with the October 19 referendum only weeks away, they are also entitled to ask some hard questions about today’s Pacific Link announcement. The first is: why now? Alberta has been seeking tidewater access for decades. This new pipeline was formally referred to the Major Projects Office on July 2. Yet the major announcement declaring it a project of national interest arrives immediately before Albertans make an important decision about their future constitutional relationship with Ottawa. That timing deserves scrutiny. Its Ottawa playing politics to get Albertans to forget about decades of mistreatment and how Canada does not work for Alberta. Albertans should also look carefully at what was actually announced. This is not yet a fully approved, financed or construction-ready pipeline. The current estimated cost is between $35 billion and $44 billion. Taxpayers are now on the hook for the overwhelming majority of the initial ownership interest, while major questions remain about final financing, new BC tolls on Alberta oil, shipper commitments and the ultimate cost to taxpayers. The pipeline comes with many strings attached imposed by Ottawa. The $20-30 billion Pathways carbon-capture project will be another hit on taxpayers. This brings the combined cost to taxpayers of over $70 billion which is the same amount as the total budget for the Alberta Government including health care, education, and social programs. Today’s announcement is significant and I hope the pipeline ultimately gets built. But Albertans should judge it on the facts, not the timing of a press conference. Does Canada still work for Alberta or can Alberta do better? That’s the question that will be decided on October 19. Serious change is needed in the constitutional relationship so that the Alberta Government does not have to spend decades of effort and billions in taxpayer dollars just to get a new pipeline.