Trudeau says Ottawa to work constructively with Alberta after sovereignty act passes

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the federal government is going to work as constructively as possible with Alberta after lawmakers passed Premier Danielle Smith’s controversial sovereignty act.

The legislature passed the legislation overnight after stripping out a provision that would have granted the provincial cabinet extraordinary powers.

Indigenous groups had called for the bill to be scrapped and the Opposition New Democrats described it as “a hot mess express.”

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• Alberta passes sovereignty act, but first strips out sweeping powers to cabinet

• Alberta premier rejects accusations her sovereignty bill is undemocratic power grab

• Alberta, Saskatchewan chiefs call for sovereignty acts to be withdrawn

Trudeau says he will continue to focus on what Albertans need and want.

“We’re not going to get into arguing about something that obviously is the Alberta government trying to push back at the federal government,” the prime minister said Thursday.

He says he will focus on delivering on things such as child care and dental care.

Meanwhile, Randy Boissonnault, a federal Liberal cabinet minister from Alberta, says nobody has asked for this legislation and is concerned how it will be used.

“I’m very curious to see how this is going to be used. I’m concerned to see what the applications of this are. I’ve talked to mayors, I have people in the post-secondary system — they’re very nervous, they’re very worried,” he said.