Few in Alberta, regardless of your stance on politics or the environment – would disagree with other Canadian provinces choosing to import oil and gas from outside of our country.
Even more puzzling is the lack of political commentary or policy on this subject. In my entire life, I cannot think of one party or politician publicly demanding that Canada and its provinces must use petroleum products produced right here in Canada.
More offensive is Quebec’s well-known refusal to use Canadian oil in favor of importing from Saudi Arabia and Russia. In fact, our friends to the east import an estimated 46% of their oil from outside our nation, along with an additional $2 billion worth of natural gas from the United States. Since 1998, of the $488 billion in oil imported to our soil, Quebec accounted for $228 billion of that total.
To add insult to injury, in 2025, Quebec is budgeted to receive $13.6 billion from the federal government, compared to Alberta’s zero dollars—all while Alberta sends Ottawa $8.6 billion to bolster the Eastern economy, particularly the province of Quebec (Source: Canada Federal Transfers).
In fact, Quebec is set to enjoy 52% of the available federal funds, despite having only 22.8% of the country’s population.
The federal government has long been afraid of standing up to Francophones in this country, and political parties are too concerned about the impact the province can have on election results. Piss off Quebec, and you have little chance of winning a majority—which is exactly why the Liberal Party has courted (some may say pandered to) the French. It’s also why Conservatives have had such a challenge in winning a majority when the Quebecois Party isn’t doing well enough to reduce the Liberal vote.
How Tariffs Can Balance the Equation
In 2018, Quebec formally declared that no pipeline would be allowed to pass through its territory, despite enjoying a disproportionate share of federal money that comes from the West and oil revenue. What is clear is that no politician or party is willing to stand up to the province.
However, an effective end run around their spoiled stepchild mentality could be, during this period of Trump tariffs, for the incoming governing party to impose tariffs on oil imported into Canada. This would please most conservatives – dramatically contribute to revenue in the oil industry and bolster the Alberta economy. These tariffs could be set at such a prohibitive rate that provinces like Quebec could no longer afford to betray the country they happily accept handouts from – and would be forced to “Buy Canadian.”
This would allow politicians to save face while abruptly stopping the incentives for foreign nations to “convince” Quebec officials into buying oil not just from abroad but from enemies of this country.
As this tariff would apply to all provinces, Quebec would have trouble crying about federal interference in their independence and autonomous decision-making. Absolutely, Quebec—keep buying oil from the USA or Saudi Arabia—but it’s going to cost you 25% more than it does now.
Politicians padding their pockets and taking ” gifts ” in Canada’s second-largest province will cry foul but will have a very hard time convincing their voters, no matter how pro-French they are, that there is any valid reason the province should be buying oil from outside Canada.
In turn, this proposed tariff will go a long way to counteracting the tariffs Trump is planning to put on the oil industry and our imports to the Americans – while offsetting any economic loss to Alberta and petroleum exports. In turn, this means that we can keep sending billions to Quebec to keep them happy and complaining about the country they happily live off of.
For me, there’s a wonderful sense of irony that Quebec would have to start contributing some of the money we send them back into the Alberta oil patch.
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