University of Calgary to Analyze Costs of Alberta Separation

A University of Calgary research team is conducting an independent analysis of the economic impacts if Alberta were to separate from Canada ^[1].

The study aims to determine if the province could deliver federal-level services more cost-effectively on its own. This research provides a data-driven foundation for the ongoing public debate regarding Alberta's potential independence and the fiscal viability of such a move.

Former Member of Parliament Martha Hall Findlay, who also serves as the director of the School of Public Policy, said the initiative on Alberta Primetime on June 16, 2026 ^[1]. The analysis focuses on the specific cost-effectiveness of replacing federal infrastructure and services with provincial or independent systems.

Separation would require the province to assume full responsibility for services currently managed by the federal government. These include national defense, international trade agreements, and federal taxation systems. The research team is tasked with evaluating whether these services could be managed more efficiently at a local level or if the loss of federal scale would increase costs.

Host Michael Higgins and Hall Findlay said the complexities of such a transition during the broadcast ^[1]. The study seeks to move the conversation from political rhetoric to economic reality by quantifying the potential financial shifts.

Because federal services are integrated across all provinces, the analysis must account for the loss of shared resources, and the cost of establishing new regulatory frameworks. The University of Calgary's findings are expected to highlight the gap between current federal spending and the projected costs of an independent Alberta administration.