Alberta plans referendum to wrest control over immigration from Canadian government

FILE PHOTO: Alberta’s Premier Danielle Smith gestures on the final day of the national convention for Canada's official opposition Conservative Party, in the wake of its April 2025 election loss, the day after party members voted 87.4 per cent in favour of keeping leader Pierre Poilievre, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada January 31, 2026. REUTERS/Jennifer Gauthier/File Photo

CALGARY, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Alberta ⁠will hold a referendum this fall to ask residents if its government should limit the ⁠number of new international students, temporary foreign workers and asylum seekers arriving in the ‌oil-rich Canadian province.

The move, announced by Premier Danielle Smith in a televised address on Thursday evening, represents an attempt by Alberta to wrest control of a key issue from the federal government. Immigration policy in Canada is primarily the responsibility of Ottawa, ​not the provinces.