Recommendations from the Alberta Next panel have been provided to the provincial government. (Photo: Pattison Media)

By David Opinko

Next steps recommended for AB pensions, police, referendums

Dec 19, 2025 | 2:43 PM

The Alberta Next Panel has provided seven recommendations for initiatives that could have big implications for Albertans.

The panel toured communities across the province in the summer and fall, including Edmonton, Red Deer, Sherwood Park, Fort McMurray, Lloydminster, Medicine Hat, Lethbridge, Airdrie, Grande Prairie and Calgary.

Premier Danielle Smith, who also served as the chair of the panel, says that people have been clear for too long that decisions made outside of the province have limited Alberta’s ability to grow its economy and chart its own course.

“This engagement was about confronting those realities and identifying concrete options to take control of our future. We’ve received the panel’s recommendations and will review them carefully before responding in the months ahead,” says Smith.

No final decisions on the following topics have been made at this time.

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The recommendations are as follows:

1. Continue to build and support institutions for trusted, responsible self-government to reduce Alberta’s dependence on Ottawa and strengthen Alberta’s respect within the federation.
2. Provide Albertans with a detailed Alberta Pension Plan proposal outlining what benefits, management structure, contribution rates and implementation plan an APP would include. A provincial referendum asking Albertans whether to establish an APP and exit the CPP should only be scheduled after this proposal is provided to Albertans.
3. Complete a detailed cost-benefit analysis for Alberta collecting its own personal income taxes for future consideration by Albertans, but do not schedule a referendum on this issue at this time.
4. Take a leading role in working with other provinces and the federal government to reform equalization and fiscal federalism.
5. Continue with the ongoing work of establishing an Alberta Police Service (APS) to provide policing services in Alberta’s rural and small city communities, and transition community policing services from the RCMP to the APS and municipal policing services.
6. Proceed to a provincial referendum on the provincial government exercising more control over immigration.
7. Proceed to a provincial referendum on Alberta working with other provinces on specific constitutional amendments to protect provincial jurisdiction, including:
   • Protecting provincial areas of jurisdiction from federal interference.
   • A provincial right to opt-out of federal programs affecting provincial jurisdiction without losing the associated funding.
   • Permitting provinces to appoint their own King’s Bench and Court of Appeal Justices.
   • Abolishing the unelected federal Senate.

The Alberta Next panel meetings were attended by over 5,000 people. Livestreams of the town halls have roughly 80,000 views. Each of the six surveys hosted on the panel’s website has between 6,000 and 12,000 responses.

You can see the panel’s report on the recommendations here.

Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi issued the following statement on the Alberta Next panel’s recommendations:

“This government spent millions of dollars of taxpayer money on a biased process where Albertans were routinely silenced or disrespected if they disagreed with the pre-formed outcomes. Now they want to spend millions more on non-binding referendums that Albertans don’t want and didn’t ask for.

“The UCP wants to pull Alberta out of the RCMP, take control of seniors’ hard-earned pensions, and take over jurisdiction of immigration, all for their own political gain. These are not small changes. They are costly, destabilizing proposals that risk Alberta’s economic prosperity, undermine investor confidence, and put public services at risk.

“And it’s no surprise that the UCP tried to keep this hidden, refusing to release the panel results for months, only to make them available late on a Friday afternoon as Albertans get ready for the Christmas break.

“Our team of Alberta’s New Democrats held our own series town halls throughout the summer and across the province. Thousands of Albertans took part. We heard that Albertans want a government focused on lowering the cost of living, creating good jobs, and protecting public health care and education. We know that Canada and Alberta are better together, and that unity, not division, is the way forward for a better Alberta.

“Danielle Smith did not run on these proposals; indeed, she ran against many of them. If she believes Albertans are with her, she should call an election now.”