UCP members quit, business leaders warn as Alberta’s immigration referendum sparks backlash

Former Progressive Conservative candidate Gurnam Dodd wrote to United Conservative Party (UCP) membership vice‑president Patrick Malkin asking that his membership be cancelled. In a more‑than‑thousand‑word letter he said the recent referendum risked “normalizing separation as an ordinary instrument of provincial bargaining” and criticized slogans that divided “established Albertans from newcomers.”

Referendum outcomes

The referendum, held last week, asked Albertans whether the province should have greater control over immigration and public‑service access for newcomers. Voters overwhelmingly chose to remain in Canada but approved measures giving Albertans “first priority on new employment opportunities,” creating a separate class of services for non‑permanent immigrants that would charge for health‑care and education, and barring those without citizenship, permanent residency or “Alberta approved immigration status” from provincially funded programs.

Party fallout

Since the vote, about half a dozen former supporters have called the UCP to request membership cancellations similar to Dodd’s. Gursharan Buttar, owner of Edmonton’s My Radio 580, said, “People are upset.” He added, “Immigrants are submitting their resignation,” and asked, “When immigrants were on the receiving end, why did they not speak?”

Business reaction

A Calgary Chamber of Commerce survey found more than two‑thirds of large businesses consider immigrant employees essential. Chamber president Deborah Yedlin warned that extra costs for health‑care and education could make Alberta less competitive for investment, noting the province forecasts a shortfall of over 100,000 workers in the next decade.

Opposition and next steps

Edmonton lawyer Avnish Nanda, founder of the pro federalist group Our Alberta Advantage, said the immigration agenda “is an existential threat” and is pivoting his group to oppose the measures.