daveberta.ca - Alberta Politics and Elections

Continuing from my post from earlier this week, here are some of my thoughts on the first week of the 2007 fall session of the Alberta Legislature…

1) There are three Dave’s (Dave, Dave, and Dave) who should be allowed to speak more often.

2) To reiterate #1, Ed Stelmach should let Dave Hancock talk for him in Question Period. It would be far less painful for everyone.

3) Alberta Liberal Leader Kevin Taft and Ed Stelmach have had some entertaining spars in the first two days over failed Energy Minister Mel Knight and the $6 Billion dollars in resource royalties that the Tories failed to collect over the past number of years. With Auditor General Fred Dunn’s findings backing Taft’s position, I will again reiterate #1, Stelmach should let Hancock do the talking.

4) Ken Kowalski is embarrassed about Alberta’s shortest election. I’m embarrassed for Ken Kowalski (in fact, I shed a tear).

5) The Alberta Liberal Caucus has finally hired a new Caucus Communications Director in the form of Larry Johnsrude, so I’d expect some interesting communication strategy and direction coming out of the Official Opposition (direction on the communications-front has been one of the Alberta Liberal Caucus’ most noticeable weaknesses in recent sessions). Watch out, Public Affair Bureau.

6) It will be interesting to see how newcomers Craig Cheffins (Alberta Liberal MLA Calgary-Elbow) and Jack Hayden (PC MLA Drumheller-Stettler) adapt in their first session.

7) There is some big debate on Bill 46 and it is spilling out into what is supposed to be safe Tory territory. Check out CFSR for more…

8) At what point do you think the newly re-elected big city mayors Stephen Mandel and Dave Bronconnier start throwing their weight around?

9) When is Gary Mar resigning his Calgary-Mackay seat to take his patronage post in Washington DC? His name is still listed on the Assembly seating plan.

10) Brian Mason continued railing against the Alberta Liberals with the approval of the Stelmach Tories. The Tories are doing their best to support the New Democrats in the Legislature in hopes that any NDP gains in Edmonton will offset Alberta Liberal gains in Calgary, once again creating a winning situation for the 36-year ruling Tories.

I actually don’t mind the other three New Democrat MLAs, but Brian Mason’s strategy is one of the reasons why I’d have a hard time supporting his party (his mustache is the other reason).

11) Alberta Alliance MLA Paul Hinman… yeah… so… Paul Hinman… there’s no real point in writing any more on this topic…

12) I’m still waiting for Drayton Valley-Calmar Tory MLA Reverend Tony Abbott to do something crazy.

In 2005, Abbott declared that Federal Tory/Liberal MP Belinda Stronach “whored herself out for power” and then proceeded to try to get into a fist-fight with Alberta Liberal MLA Rick Miller in the hall behind the Assembly.

Abbott recently lost his bid for the Tory nomination in his own constituency, so he really has nothing to lose (and has also been rumoured to be in talks with the Wild Rose Party).

13) Looking to the future, you have no idea how much I’m looking forward to a Harry Chase–Cal Dallas showdown in Question Period after the next election.

Best-political-names-ever.

I have a growing list of thoughts on the start of the fall session of the Alberta Legislature that I’ll post tomorrow. But until then, here is my one first thought:

1) There are three Dave’s (Dave, Dave, and Dave) who should be allowed to speak more often.

The fall session of the Alberta Legislature begins this afternoon and it should be interesting.

With rumours of a fall election potentially starting to fade and and the potential for a spring election looking more likely, look for the parties inside and outside of the Assembly to try to capitalize on this session.

Here are some things to look forward to:

1) Ed Stelmach‘s Tories will be putting forward 24 Bills forward for the fall session which includes an agressive agenda on smoking-bans and speeding tickets (no legislation on royalties will make it this fall). The most controversial will no doubt be Bill 46.
Critics fear that under the premise of making the EUB more efficient, Bill 46 breaks up the EUB into two separate entities, the ERCB and AUC. The Bill then:

1. Gives the Alberta Utilities Commission the power to make orders and issue decisions without giving public notice or holding public hearings (section 9(1));

2. Gives the Alberta Utilities Commission the power to prevent landowners and consumers from making verbal representations to the Commission (section 9(4));

3. Limits the time period in which Albertans can appeal a decision or order made by the Alberta Utilities Commission to 30 days (section 29(2)).

4. Restricts the ability of landowners to hire outside legal counsel when intervening in regulatory hearings (section 9(4));

5. Corrects past misdeeds and wrongdoings by making this law retroactive to June 1 2003. Section 98(2)

If Ed Stelmach is smart, he’ll let Dave Hancock do all the talking.

2) As well as focusing in on Bill 46, Kevin Taft’s Alberta Liberals will be putting forward a legislative agenda including a comprehensive housing strategy, labour-code reforms, and water protection.

They will also keep up the pressure on Ed Stelmach and Mel Knight so the issue of the billions of dollars of resource royalties the Tories failed to collect stays on the minds of Albertans (they’ve also put together a fancy map showing what those billions could have been used for).

The Alberta Liberal Caucus has also hired former Edmonton Journal reporter Larry Johnsrude as their new Caucus Communications Director.

3) Watch out for Drayton Valley-Calmar Tory MLA Tony Abbott. Abbott is a standard bearer for the right-wing in the Tory caucus and was defeated in his nomination for the next election. He could be unpredictable.

4) Watch for the Wild Rose Party to try to fill the void left by Paul Hinman’s one-man Alberta Alliance caucus on the right flank. Don’t count on it, but maybe we’ll hear something from newly elected Social Credit leader Len Skowronski.

5) Look for the issue of the Stelmach Tories Public Affairs Bureau spending spree on a $145,000 infomercial and +$200,000 taxpayer funded partisan advertising campaign to make news through question period.