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We’re having to buy our own trains to help get small-ish amounts of oil to market. We’ve had to shut in nearly nine per cent of our production to prop up the price. And we’re about to be hit harder than any province except Saskatchewan by Justin Trudeau’s carbon tax, which takes effect Jan. 1.

Meanwhile, Quebec is being rewarded despite (in effect) vetoing the Energy East pipeline. The pipeline wasn’t popular in Quebec, so last year the Trudeau government moved the regulatory goalposts so the developers (TransCanada) would give up and self-cancel. That way the Libs wouldn’t lose any seats in Quebec.

Quebec is running a $3-billion budget surplus this year. And, it’s cutting corporate tax rates and continuing to boast about its heavily subsidized day care and university tuition. It also refuses to develop its own energy reserves in the name of saving the environment.

Yet Quebec is only able to afford all these things because next year they can rely on huge gobs of other provinces’ cash to fund their provincial spending.

The Trudeau government will send Quebec an extra $13.1 billion in 2019, up from the $11.7 billion Ottawa sent them this year. All of which is on top of the tens of billions of regular transfer payments Quebec and all the other provinces receive.

If you, as an Albertan, are angry about this, don’t be bought off by the two excuses the feds will try to feed you: equalization is required by the constitution and annual payments are based on a complicated formula that isn’t controlled by the government of the day.