Conservative activists set impossible standards for politicians and abandon them when they're not met
For more than three decades, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney has been one of the leading political figures in Canada’s conservative movement. The 53-year-old headed the Canadian Taxpayers Federation in the 1990s and has been a strong advocate for low taxes, limited government and fiscal responsibility ever since. He served as a Reform Party, Canadian Alliance…
Focus on sustainable solutions rather than on short-term ones with strings-attached
The Alberta government stopped collecting its fuel tax at the beginning of April in an effort to provide “real relief” to Albertans impacted by rising fuel and inflationary costs. The tax cut saves motorists up to 13 cents per litre on gasoline and diesel but reduces the provincial revenues by approximately $1.3 billion (nearly three per…
Alberta needs to seize this opportunity; as history has shown, it may not last
Under the backdrop of rising provincial oil revenues, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney’s speech to the Alberta Municipal Leaders caucus in March and the debate around it mark the start of what will be the dominating discussion in provincial politics from now until the election. The question is, what do we do with this new revenue?…
If you’ve had to drive your kids to hockey, go grocery shopping or commute to work, you’ve likely cursed every time you saw the price at the pump. Gas prices have now reached a high of over $1.50 per litre. That’s the highest level since Statistics Canada started tracking this data in 1990. Higher gas…
Bit by bit, politicians will be taking more money from your family this year
Another year and another New Year’s dominated by COVID-19. Restrictions on hockey games, travel and even community gatherings lead the news. While that diverts our attention, politicians are nickel and diming us with higher taxes. In 2022, we’ll pay higher income taxes, carbon taxes, property taxes and even higher taxes for a bottle of booze.…
Without that trust, public officials lose their social licence to govern
The heartbreaking death of Nathanael Spitzer, the cancer-stricken boy from Ponoka, exposed a most callous streak in Alberta’s medical bureaucracy. There’s no forgiving how Alberta Health Services appallingly used a child’s death to promote yet more COVID-19 fear. However, one should dismiss the promise from Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, Deena Hinshaw, to process…
Alberta invests $55.1M to taking vaccines, antiviral drugs from discovery to manufacturing
Alberta is building a better pipeline, but this one’s not for oil and gas products – it’s for vaccines and therapeutic drugs to fight viral diseases. The province announced a $55.1-million grant on Wednesday for University of Alberta research on ways to prevent and treat COVID-19, including $15 million for vaccine projects and $10 million for studies…
$27M from Alberta government goes to research in health, energy, environment, agriculture and astrophysics
An investment of $27 million from the Alberta government will significantly boost research capacity and lead to innovations across the sciences at the University of Alberta. The provincial government announced recently that a four-year investment through its Research Capacity Program will be used to upgrade or create new facilities and infrastructure for 11 research projects.…
It’s ironic to procrastinate on planning. Sure, things will change, and any plan will have to change too, but it’s still essential to have some ideas about where to go and how to get there. There will never be a better time to make a plan. Yet Alberta is putting off its financial planning. It…
Making it easier for professionals certified in over 100 occupations to move to the province
While nearly one in three Canadian businesses is reporting labour shortages, Alberta is taking steps to make it easier for professionals certified in over 100 occupations to move to the province. Currently, these professionals wait between six and 12 months for their credentials from other provinces to be recognized. Thus, highly proficient Canadian-trained professionals like…
For more than three decades, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney has been one of the leading political figures in Canada’s conservative movement. The 53-year-old headed the Canadian Taxpayers Federation in the 1990s and has been a strong advocate for low taxes, limited government and fiscal responsibility ever since. He served as a Reform Party, Canadian Alliance…
