C-Suite Unplugged Special: Adam Legge, President of Business Council of Alberta

So let's get to the heart of your argument.

Why should Alberta stay in Canada?

The biggest argument is the element of certainty for Albertans.

Now, I'll say a couple of things.

One is there's always going to be elements of uncertainty in business, in investment and in our everyday lives.

But when we think about it from the perspective of Albertans, there is some core fundamental things that we rely upon that enable us to live and to plan for

the

future.

Some of those things are the passport that we carry and the value of the maple leaf, not only on the passport, but on our backpacks and internationally.

The currency that we have.

We know the value of the Canadian dollar and how it trades against other currencies.

We know how it's denominated and how it's traded.

We know how we get money.

employment insurance and old age pensions.

We know that Canada borrows at the best credit rating and the lowest borrowing costs in the developed world.

And therefore, we can be assured that our mortgage rates, if they're variable, will be tied to that and that there is no

better deal that we can get on interest rates elsewhere.

Those are the things that enable Albertans to plan and think about the future and what they do and where they go.

All of those things, in addition to a whole host of other things, will be cast into uncertainty if we are to consider separation.

We would all of a sudden need a Bank of Alberta.

We don't know if we would have... an Alberta dollar or use the Canadian currency or tie it to the United States.

What does that mean for the value of your savings, the value of your house? If we couldn't get good credit rating as a sovereign nation, your mortgage payments are going to go up.

If you want to go to a family reunion, in prince george british columbia or alford saskatchewan are you going to need to take your passport those sorts of things we know how we can get our tvs and our clothes and our running shoes that flow in from the port of vancouver are we going to have that same access are our oil and gas resources going to go they're going to create thousands of jobs are they going to be able to go to the west coast is a west second west coast pipeline going to be viable Those are the kinds of uncertainties that I think Albertans really need to reflect on because every single one of those would be up for debate and negotiation in a separate Alberta outcome.

And we may or may not like what that outcome is.

And with no timelines attached to resolving any of that.