Canadian province to hold independence referendum - and could become a US state

The Canadian province of Alberta will hold an independence referendum within months, its Premier has confirmed.

A petition calling for separation had gained more than 300,000 signatures earlier this year - and now, a date has been set for a vote.

Albertans will vote on whether to stay in Canada, or push ahead with a second binding vote on separating, on October 19.

In a TV address last night, Premier Danielle Smith said the question on ballot cards will be: "Should Alberta remain a province of Canada or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?"

The premier said she would vote for Alberta to stay - while opinion polls suggest the majority of locals would vote against separating.

Another petition calling for the province to stay, also earlier this year, garnered more than 400,000 signatures..

French-speaking Quebec, so far, is Canada's only province to have held an independence referendum - doing so twice, in 1980 and 1995.

Alberta's independence movement is more popular on the right, as is the idea of joining the US.

Before Canada's Federal Election last year, activists in Alberta said a win for Mark Carney's Liberal Party would considerably increase support for Albertan independence.

And when the Liberals won, Alberta's Government introduced an Act to make it easier for citizens to initiate referendums, including on separation from Canada.

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