After a group of Albertans who make up the Alberta Prosperity Project met with U.S. officials, B.C. Premier David Eby threw an old-fashioned word at them in condemnation.
The word wasn’t shackbaggerly, it was “treason.”
Eby spoke to the media on Thursday morning and, in a fierce speech, did not pull any punches in calling the group out.
The premier referenced an article he read in the Financial Times, which disclosed that Trump officials met with a group from Alberta, pushing for “independence from Canada.”
“The Alberta Prosperity Project strives to bolster Alberta’s prosperity, self-determination, and independence. We believe sound policy is the bedrock of prosperity, and we advocate for the need to explore avenues for greater sovereignty within or outside the Canadian federation,” a blurb on the Alberta Prosperity Project states about its aims.
According to the Times article, folks from the Alberta Prosperity Project are seeking to meet with U.S. treasury officials to ask for a $500-billion credit facility if an independence referendum is passed.
Eby described the situation a bit differently.
“A group of people from Alberta, I won’t describe them as Albertans, who went to the White House seeking the assistance of the United States to break up our country,” Eby said.
Eby told reporters that he understands the need to hold a referendum to talk about the issues folks are dealing with in Canada, pointing to the importance of free speech.
“But to go to a foreign country and to ask for assistance in breaking up Canada, there’s an old-fashioned word for that. And that word is treason,” Eby said.
Eby went on to say that the move was “completely inappropriate,” especially in light of the fact that U.S. President Donald Trump has not been respectful to Canada’s sovereignty.
The B.C. premier said he’d be raising this Alberta issue in a meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney in Ottawa.
“While we can respect the right of any Canadian to express themselves, to vote in a referendum, I think we need to draw the line at people seeking the assistance of foreign countries to break up this beautiful land of ours, that our forefathers, our foremothers, our parents, our grandparents fought for.”
There is an old word to describe going to a foreign power and asking for their assistance in breaking up a sovereign country — it’s treason.
Canadians are standing together in defence of this beautiful land. 🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/8EezQAQWWi
— David Eby (@Dave_Eby) January 29, 2026
Just FYI, shackbaggerly means loose, disorderly, or messy.
We’ve contacted the Alberta Prosperity Project for a response to Eby.