Alberta
Here are the people who will set the tone for Alberta’s financial future
From The Province of Alberta
Blue Ribbon Panel to assess Alberta’s finances
The Alberta government has appointed an independent panel of experts as a key first step in getting the province’s budget back to balance.
The Blue Ribbon Panel on Alberta’s Finances has been directed to do a deep dive into Alberta’s finances and economy. The focus will be on identifying areas to eliminate waste, duplication and non-essential spending to create the space to fund government’s key priorities.
“Albertans elected a government committed to getting our fiscal house in order, and reversing the province’s dive into debt. This exceptional panel will offer great experience and expertise to give us an honest read of the province’s finances, and a road map for fiscal responsibility.”
The panel will provide advice in a number of areas to get government’s budget back on track, including on:
- Government’s fiscal outlook and department and agency expenditure trends and cost drivers.
- A plan to balance the budget by 2022-23 without raising taxes, and a new fiscal framework that includes requirements for future balanced budgets and a plan to retire the province’s accumulated debt.
- Government’s budgeting, fiscal planning and public reporting processes and systems for operating and capital.
- The business investment climate in Canada and its impact on the Alberta economy.
“By identifying inefficiencies in Alberta’s current fiscal situation, we can begin making plans to bring balance to the province’s finances. We will do this while remaining committed to ensuring the future of high-quality, frontline services for Albertans.”
The Blue Ribbon Panel members:
Janice MacKinnon, chair: MacKinnon is chair of the board of Investment Saskatchewan, chair of the board of directors of the Institute for Research on Public Policy and a former finance minister with the Government of Saskatchewan.
Mike Percy, vice-chair – Percy was previously an Alberta MLA and former Stanley A. Milner professor and dean of the Alberta School of Business at the University of Alberta. Percy was also the chief of staff to Premier Jim Prentice.
Kim Henderson, member – Henderson is a principal at Sproat Advising. Her previous roles include deputy minister to the Premier, cabinet secretary and head of the Public Service, Province of British Columbia and deputy minister of finance with the Province of British Columbia.
Bev Dahlby, member – Dhalby is a Distinguished Fellow and research director, School of Public Policy at the University of Calgary.
Dave Mowat, member – Mowat is the former president and CEO, ATB Financial.
Jay Ramotar, member – Ramotar has held many deputy minister postings with the Alberta Public Service, including Service Alberta, Solicitor General and Public Security, Health and Wellness, Infrastructure and Transportation and Treasury Board.
Alberta
Free Alberta Strategy petition demanding PM Trudeau fire Steven Guilbeault passes 13,000 signatures
News release from Free Alberta Strategy
Are you tired of watching elected officials flout the law and disregard public concerns with impunity?
Are you frustrated by a federal government that prioritizes arrogance over accountability?
If so, you’re not alone.
Over 13,000 people have signed our petition calling on Justin Trudeau to fire Steven Guilbeault.
Once one of Greenpeace’s most disruptive forces, Guilbeault has spent enough time in an orange jumpsuit to build up a reputation for deliberately ignoring both law enforcement and the courts.
Since then, his career has been marked by a troubling disregard for both legal boundaries and public sentiment.
In 2001, Guilbeault was found guilty of mischief for scaling the CN Tower in Toronto and displaying a banner.
He received a sentence of one year’s probation, was mandated to complete 100 hours of community service in Montreal, and was ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution.
The incident incurred approximately $50,000 in costs for the tower operators.
Shortly thereafter, Guilbeault orchestrated another audacious act, leading a Greenpeace team in a demonstration at the Calgary residence of then Alberta Premier Ralph Klein and his wife, Colleen.
They erected a banner, positioned ladders against the house, and ascended to the roof to install a solar panel.
The intrusion deeply unsettled Colleen Klein, who was alone at the time and feared a home invasion – she resorted to grabbing a broom for defense.
Despite his controversial background, Justin Trudeau’s decision to appoint Guilbeault as Minister of Environment and Climate Change raised eyebrows and elicited criticism.
Jason Kenney, then premier of Alberta, accurately predicted the consequences of Guilbeault assuming a significant role in Justin Trudeau’s cabinet.
“His own personal background and track record on these issues suggests someone who is more an absolutist than a pragmatist when it comes to finding solutions,” Kenney said.
It’s perhaps no surprise then that Guilbeault’s response to legal setbacks in his political career, such as the Supreme Court’s ruling on the unconstitutionality of his Impact Assessment Act, has been dismissive, indicating a stubborn adherence to his own agenda rather than a willingness to heed judicial guidance.
Instead of accepting that he was wrong and repealing the law, Guilbeault wants to pass minor amendments and pretend like the Supreme Court ruling never happened.
Worse, the amendments – buried 552 pages into a 686-page budget implementation bill – don’t fix the problem.
Guilbeault still has the power to control projects that fall under provincial jurisdiction.
Consequently, tensions between the federal and provincial governments have escalated, with Alberta poised to immediately challenge the amended legislation in court once again.
This charade is getting old.
This pattern of defiance and disregard for legal constraints has become wearisome, eroding public trust in the integrity of federal institutions.
The rotation of headlines proclaiming federal overreach and constitutional breaches underscores a troubling trend within the governing party, where arrogance appears to have supplanted prudent governance.
Guilbeault, with his checkered past and continued ignorance of the law since becoming Minister, are crippling public confidence.
A few months ago, we launched a petition calling on Justin Trudeau to see the light, and fire his most controversial Minister.
Since then, things have only gotten worse.
If you agree, and think Guilbeault should be fired, please sign our petition today:
Then, send this petition to your friends, family, and every Albertan so that they can sign too!
Regards,
The Free Alberta Strategy Team
Alberta
Fortis et Liber: Alberta’s Future in the Canadian Federation
From the C2C Journal
By Barry Cooper, professor of political science, University of Calgary
Canada’s western lands, wrote one prominent academic, became provinces “in the Roman sense” – acquired possessions that, once vanquished, were there to be exploited. Laurentian Canada regarded the hinterlands as existing primarily to serve the interests of the heartland. And the current holders of office in Ottawa often behave as if the Constitution’s federal-provincial distribution of powers is at best advisory, if it needs to be acknowledged at all. Reviewing this history, Barry Cooper places Alberta’s widely criticized Sovereignty Act in the context of the Prairie provinces’ long struggle for due constitutional recognition and the political equality of their citizens. Canada is a federation, notes Cooper. Provinces do have rights. Constitutions do mean something. And when they are no longer working, they can be changed.
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