(Cheering)

What a crowd. 

(Cheering)

What a celebration. 

(Cheering)

What a country.

(Cheering)

Your mayor is not bad. Your mayor is not bad either. Look, trust, trust Calgarians. Tell them they’re coming to hear a few speeches and they turn it into a party. 

(Cheering)

They turn it into a celebration of the True North, strong and free.

(Cheering)

We have the greatest country on Earth reflected in this room.

(Cheering)

Proud Calgarians, proud Albertans, proud Canadians. 

(Cheering)

Amazing. You’ve heard from some of them tonight. Jeromy, what’s his name? Farkas.

(Laughter)

Fantastic. Fantastic. Thomas Lukaszuk.

(Cheering)

Let me start from thanking Thomas and all the Forever Canadian volunteers.

(Cheering)

All of you. All of you. From the Neon Volunteers down. You’ve knocked on the doors. You’ve gathered the signatures. You’ve made the calls. You are fighting for Canada.

(Cheering)

Jeromy and Deborah, leaders who have continually stood up for Canada and Alberta’s place at its very heart.

(Cheering)

Jon Cornish.

(Cheering)

I want to be on the right side of that guy.

(Laughter)

That’s all I’m saying.

Jon Cornish. One of 30% of this province who came here from outside of this province. Came here from Canada, outside this province. Came here and I’m an Elks fan, but I’ve got to acknowledge it became a champion in football, a true champion in football, and then a champion of our community. And you know what? There is a common thread that runs through their remarkable stories and through their service. Through their messages tonight. Jon hit on it. It’s the power of a team. 

(Cheering)

Because the team helps us achieve far more together than we ever could alone. And that is the Canada we’re here to celebrate tonight.

(Cheering)

That is the Canada to fight for.

(Cheering)

That is the Canada you are fighting for, we are fighting for when it matters the most.

(Cheering)

And it matters. It matters. The stakes are high. The stakes are high. This referendum, let’s be clear. It comes at the worst possible time. The world has become more dangerous and divided. There are some outside our borders who are working to break us so they can own us.

(Booing)

We know. We know. We know that we can give ourselves far more than anyone else can take away. 

(Cheering)

And we know something else. We know that when we are united, we become even stronger, even fairer, even freer as a country.

(Cheering)

At this pivotal moment, Albertans have a choice. Can build a stronger Alberta and an even greater Canada to leave for our children. 

(Cheering)

Or we can burden them with years of deep division and great uncertainty. No, no. Don’t worry, kids, with this crowd. What we need is a decisive result on Monday to settle this question.

(Cheering)

That’s what we need. And right now, our country needs three things from you, from all Albertans. First, mark your calendar. This crowd knows, but I want everyone to know. Monday is referendum day. And if you can vote, vote now advance polls are open through this Saturday.

(Cheering)

Secondly, take a tip from the dress sense here. Show your pride. Wear the maple leaf. Wear the sweater. Tell your friends, your family, your coworkers, why you are voting for Canada. 

(Cheering)

And third, I said three things. Third, bring it, friend and vote like Canada depends on it. Because it does. It does depend on it. Don’t let anyone tell you that this is already decided. No. Turnout will determine the outcome. And don’t be fooled by the idea that you can send a message with your vote. This is not poker. A vote against Canada is a dangerous bluff that will lead to years of deep uncertainty and lost opportunities for Albertans and for Canadians. Our country, your futures are too precious to play games with this.

(Cheering)

My friends, this referendum is about something, something much larger than any of us. It’s about the province and the country we love. And it’s about what we can build together. Look, I know. Alberta is my home. I grew up here. 

(Cheering)

This province and this country have given me everything. My family, my education, my values. My grandparents came here because Canada held a great promise. A country that’s fair, strong, compassionate and free. 

(Cheering)

They came to a country where hard work gets you ahead and where the nation does its part, building the communities, the railways, the ports, the pipelines, the broadband to access markets. That is strength.

(Cheering)

They came for a country where we help each other, where we look out for each other, and where we stand up for each other. And that is compassion.

(Cheering)

A country where you’re free to be who you want to be, to speak your mind, to worship as you choose, to live your life as you wish. That is true independence. That is real sovereignty.

(Cheering)

In Canada, in Canada, we understood one fundamental truth: unity is not uniformity.

(Cheering)

Yes, our differences, our differences are strengths to nurture, not risks to manage. In Canada, our beliefs, our languages, our backgrounds, and our traditions are not concessions made to our citizenship.

(Cheering)

And they are the very expression of it. This unity is our strength.

(Cheering)

I say to my fellow Canadians, Albertans are justifiably proud. Proud of this great city. Proud of how a small fjord on the Bow became a global energy capital and host to the greatest outdoor show on Earth. Yahoo!

(Cheering)

Yahoo.

Justifiably proud of how Calgarians constantly push out the frontier. And always grow stronger in adversity.

(Cheering)

Proud of how Calgary and Alberta welcome the best from across Canada and from around the world.

(Cheering)

And proud of how Alberta has shaped Canada.

(Cheering)

You know, our story as Albertans didn’t start with my grandparents, or yours. Long before Alberta was a province, the Siksika, the Kainai, the Piikani Nations of the Blackfoot Confederacy. The Tsuut’ina and the Stoney Nakoda Nations called this land home. 

(Cheering)

And nearly 150 years ago at Blackfoot Crossing, they made Treaty 7 with the Crown. 

(Cheering)

Now honouring Canada’s history means facing the truth that these promises between nations have been broken many times. But because when something is not right, when it isn’t fair, we don’t hide from it. We don’t walk away from it. We fix it. We fix it together.

(Cheering)

And because of that, we become stronger for it. That is Alberta. That is Canada. 

(Cheering)

So, way back in 1929, fighting injustice, Alberta’s famous five took their case all the way to England and won recognition of women as persons under the law. 

(Cheering)

And that ruling called our Constitution a living tree. And it’s a tree with deep, deep roots in Alberta soil. In 1982, Alberta shaped the new Canadian constitution. Premier Peter Lougheed, helped secure provincial control over resources and he helped create the amending formula for that constitution.

(Cheering)

Sorry, can we get help? Sorry. Just make sure we have first responders there. Are you okay? No. Yeah. They’re at my 11 o’clock. There we go. 

(Applause)

I’m not going anywhere. So, I am in no rush.

(Cheering)

CROWD: Carney! Carney! Carney! Carney!

RT. HON. MARK CARNEY: Canada! Canada! Canada! Canada!

CROWD: Carney! Carney! Carney! Carney!

RT. HON. MARK CARNEY: Canada, Canada, Canada. That’s right. 

CROWD: Canada! Canada! Canada!

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER IN CROWD: (Inaudible)

RT. HON. MARK CARNEY: How did you know that was my nickname?

(Laughter)

Embarrassing. There’s a lot of people from Edmonton that moved to Calgary from when I grew up. I’m trying to run away from it.

Can I go? Are we covered, or no?

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER IN CROWD: (Inaudible)

(Cheering and applause)

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER IN CROWD: How is Nico?

RT. HON. MARK CARNEY: How is Nico? Nico is. You know what? Nico is home alone, actually, now, that I think about. 

(Laughter)

That’s okay, he’s put on a bit of weight. 

(Laughter)

No, he’s. Nico is good. He’s good. Nico’s my cat. In case you are wondering.

(Laughter)

Okay, it’s good that somebody’s keeping track. Yeah. Nico. Exactly. Canadian. Canadian cat. 

(Laughter)

We’re okay? Yeah. Okay. All right. Thank you. Thank you for the first responders. 

(Applause)

And thank you for you. You know. Okay, I want to thank the teachers.

(Cheering)

I want to thank the teachers. Jeromy, I did want to thank the teachers. My parents were teachers. My parents were teachers. I need to get the crowd going again and Jeromy taught me that trick.

(Laughter)

I’ve got a lot to learn from Jeromy Farkas, let me tell you, and Thomas actually. How to run a campaign. You know, I was talking about Alberta’s contributions shaping this country, shaping it through the Constitution, shaping it through Women’s rights. But also, throughout our history, Albertans have powered the world, fed the world, and led the world.

Look back, the first well in Turner Valley, turning into an energy superpower today. 

(Cheering)

You look back. You look back at the first homesteads. Many of them around Lethbridge in the 19th century, to farming two thirds of all irrigated land in Canada and raising our largest beef herd.

(Cheering)

You look back a century ago, J. B. Collip purifying the first insulin, to if you go right now, Richard Sutton’s pioneering work on frontier AI, that’s Canada made in Alberta.

(Cheering)

You know, living on the prairies, the Alberta prairie, standing up for each other, helping each other is bred in the bone. Albertans have always lived these values, so we can live them today. From the 10th Battalion in the First World War to the Calgary tanks at Dieppe in the second, the Calgary Highlanders and the King’s Own Calgary Regiment in Afghanistan. Albertans have defended Canada and our allies and always will.

(Cheering)

When the Bow River rose, volunteers rushed to meet the moment. The Canadian Armed Forces worked right alongside them, and the Stampede went ahead two weeks later under the slogan “Hell or high water.” That’s Calgary. That’s Calgary.

(Cheering)

You know, when fires tore through our communities, Canada also responded. In Jasper, firefighters came from Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Ontario, across Canada.

(Cheering)

Canadians, Canadians gave $300 million through the Red Cross to help the people of Fort McMurray.

(Cheering)

And Albertans, Albertans have always given back. Just this summer, when fires ravaged communities in B.C., hundreds, hundreds of Alberta firefighters went to their aid.

(Cheering)

And as Jeromy just reminded us, just this afternoon, first responders, police, firefighters rushed to the scene of the horrific crash near Saddletowne Station, risking their lives to save others. Tonight, doctors and nurses are treating the wounded, and friends, families and neighbours are consoling the bereaved because in Calgary, in Alberta, in Canada, we take care of each other.

(Cheering)

Here, here in Alberta, we have always spoken French: from the voyageurs, the Métis who travelled our first routes, to the families of St. Albert, Bonnyville and St. Paul, right up to the students on Campus Saint-Jean. 

(Applause)

Here, here, we have never had to choose between being an Albertan or being a Canadian. We are all Canadian. 

(Cheering)

So, next Monday, next Monday, let’s choose to continue building this country together, a country that is big enough to welcome all our differences, and strong enough to unite us.

(Cheering)

I want to say a few more words on unity because, faced with this more dangerous world, Canadians are choosing once again to stand together. Yup.

(Cheering)

And there’s lots of ways to do this. Many of them fun.

(Laughter)

It doesn’t have to be hardship all the time. Buying Alberta whiskey, taking holidays in the Rockies, coming to the stampede, choosing Canadian suppliers.

(Cheering)

Yeah, these are more than a two-fer. These are acts of fun, but they are acts of solidarity repeated millions of times. And the threads of our country are being woven together anew. You know, I won’t sugarcoat it, some of those threads have needed to be repaired. 

(Applause)

Because the frustrations that many Albertans have felt are real. You know, growing up, I remember how Ottawa made Albertans feel like our resources weren’t our own. And more recently, we were made to feel that our energy contributions were running against the tides of history. What should have brought us together began to divide us, contributing to a half a century of politics that too often pull us apart. So yes, Canada isn’t perfect, but we are the best.

(Cheering)

We are the best. We are the best and we are getting better. We are getting better.

(Cheering)

You say it. We’re working together in the spirit of cooperative federalism. It’s a mouthful. Let me tell you what it really means. Calgary is at the centre of this transformation. 

(Cheering)

Canada’s Major Projects Office. It’s new. It’s headquartered right here, making decisions about the projects that will build our country. New ports, new mines, new energy corridors, one half a trillion dollars of new investment.

(Cheering)

And together, we’re unlocking our full potential as an energy superpower, including with the Pacific Link pipeline. 

(Cheering)

It will add, it will create more than 140,000 jobs. It will reduce our dependence on the United States.

(Cheering)

I’m just saying.

(Cheering)

Oh, careful. Careful. They might… Reduce. Careful, they might think that’s election interference.

(Laughter)

I’m just saying. They’re a little touchy down there at the moment. 

(Laughter)

We’re not. We’re getting on with it. We are getting on with it.

(Cheering)

You know, these big projects, they will generate the revenues we need to protect the social programs that Albertans rely on every day health care, childcare, dental care, National School Food Program. You know, this is true nation building, and it will take a nation to build this pipeline. Yeah, we will build it through true partnerships with First Nations.

(Cheering)

With British Columbia, with suppliers from across the country.

(Cheering)

And with foreign importers who want to trade more with Canada, the world’s most reliable trading partner. 

(Cheering)

Yes, Canada is building big again, and Alberta is at the very heart of it.

(Cheering)

Half a billion dollars to build the local infrastructure for tens of thousands of affordable homes across this province.

(Cheering)

High speed rail. So, you can all come up to Edmonton.

(Laughter)

Or to come here. And don’t forget, Red Deer. We’ll be in Red Deer too. $8 billion in defence investments in Alberta over the next decade.

(Cheering)

Yeah, we’re building, and we’re building, and securing new trade deals so our farmers can get more for their crops and their livestock.

(Cheering)

One fact, I’ve got to put a few facts in here. Media is here. Up 80% this year, canola and livestock.

(Cheering)

(Inaudible) And why? Because Canada is the most connected country in the world now. Tariff free access to one and a half billion consumers. And we are just getting started.

(Cheering)

But if we’re distracted and divided, we will miss these opportunities. However, if you choose Team Canada on Monday, Albertans will go on powering the world, feeding the world, and healing the world.

(Cheering)

My friends, nobody achieves greatness on their own. Not a pro athlete as good as Jon Cornish, even as good as Jon Cornish.

(Laughter)

Not one great city on a vast prairie. Not a single province. It takes a team. It takes a team. Those who came before us understood that. They came here with hope and with ambition. They endured the hard winters and the lean years. They built homes, businesses, farms, communities. They stood by their neighbours. And together they built something greater than any of them could have imagined. And now it’s our turn. It’s our turn. Because Canada was never merely a bargain struck between provinces. It was never a series of transactions of gives and gets, of gross and net.

Canada is a promise that is so much greater than the sum of its parts.

(Cheering)

It is a promise. The promise that together we will take all that we have been given, and we have been given the greatest country in the world, and we will take it and make it so much better for all of us.

(Cheering)

That promise is for each of us to keep. Let this generation of Albertans choose to build up, not break down. Let Alberta lead, not leave, to make Canada stronger, to make it fairer, to make it freer. 

(Cheering)

So, in my public service announcement, remember these three things: Mark Monday, next Monday, October 19th, on your calendar. Show your pride, bring a friend, and vote like Canada depends on it, because it does.

(Cheering)

This is our Canada. This is our future. Let’s build it together. Thank you, Calgary.