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OTTAWA - Quebec and Ontario are extending their co-operation to holding a first-ever joint cabinet meeting by the two provincial governments in early June, The Canadian Press has learned.

The meeting in Quebec City will address several proposed agreements between the two provinces and advance economic partnerships, said sources in Quebec City and Toronto.

Environment and energy will also be among the topics on the meeting's agenda.

The final agenda has not been finalized but a source in Ontario who requested anonymity said it will cover "subjects where we can mutually help to foster economic growth."

The encounter will last two days.

The meeting of the two governments will advance an alliance which could be significant as the balance of power shifts in Canada.

In the past, the West and Atlantic Canada have formed alliances to win battles, usually with the federal government.

Ontario and Quebec usually fought their own battles but they have seen significant declines in their economic growth while the West and the Atlantic region have seen a major upswing in their fortunes thanks to revenues from oil and natural gas.

The Ontario and Quebec government have collaborated in recent years and it would be difficult to ignore a teaming of the country's two most populous provinces.

Quebec Premier Jean Charest and Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty presided over a summit on postsecondary education in 2006 to make the issue of federal funding a top priority.

They also established a common strategy for manufacturing and forestry earlier in the year and pressed the federal government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper on it.

"In cases like these, we realized that when we worked with our neighbours, it has a significant impact," said a source in Quebec who requested anonymity.

"But it should not be seen as the emergence of a force that will oppose other parts of the country," the source said.

"There is a general desire to work more together, especially in areas where there are common interests. It is not to the exclusion of other (provinces.)"

The new era of co-operation is facilitated by the presence of Liberal governments in Quebec City and at Queen's Park. In the past, one of the strongest working relationships between Ontario and Quebec premiers was between David Peterson and Robert Bourassa.