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Talk of the CPP withdrawal follows a federal election result late last month that many say exemplified Prairie frustration toward the Liberal government in Ottawa. The federal Liberals were reduced to a minority mandate after failing to capture a single seat in Alberta or Saskatchewan.

There’s also been momentum behind separatist sentiments in the two resource-dependent provinces, where their economies have struggled through a commodity downturn.

Much of the anger has been directed at Ottawa and other parts of Canada — which are accused of preventing the landlocked Prairie provinces from getting their natural resources to the coast for export.

Now, Kenney is ready to take a long look at ditching the CPP — which has been in place everywhere in Canada, except Quebec, since the mid-1960s. Quebec has been managing its own sister pension plan.

“I can certainly tell you that will be one of the issues studied by the panel that I will be appointing to consult with Albertans on fighting for a fair deal in Canada,” the Alberta premier said in a recent video clip, which was posted last week on Facebook.

“I believe that a compelling case can be made for such a shift.”

In his message, Kenney said he understands about $40-billion worth of Albertans’ premiums are managed by the CPPIB.

He said the funds, if pulled from the CPPIB, would be transferred to the Alberta Investment Management Corporation, also known as AIMCo. The institutional investor, which includes the province’s public-sector pension plans, already manages about $100 billion in assets for Alberta taxpayers, he said.