daveberta.ca – Alberta Politics and Elections

fire up your legislative agendas!

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date March 12, 2007
No Comments on fire up your legislative agendas!

The spring session of the Alberta Legislature began last week and both the Tories and Liberals have put forward their legislative agendas.

Tory Premier Ed Stelmach introduced Bill 1: The Lobbyists Act, which implements a long-needed Lobbyist Registry. Hopefully this means they’ll be less mini-buses picking up and dropping off Tory MLA’s from the Petroleum Club on Wednesday evenings. The Bill introduces strict penalites of up to $200,000 for lobbyists who break the law. Though this is a very positive step for Alberta, as Duff Conacher of Democracy Watch points out, there are still some large loopholes in The Lobbyists Act:

“If you’re friends with a cabinet minister, he can request you to come and give him advice, and then you don’t have to register,” Duff Conacher of Ottawa-based Democracy Watch said. “That has to come out (of the legislation) for sure.”

Once the former Liberal government axed that same loophole from the federal lobbyist registry in 2005, the number of registered lobbyists more than tripled in a single year. In the category of in-house corporate lobbyists, the figure shot from 191 to 1,802.

Justice Minister Ron Stevens, who sponsored the Lobbyist Act, could not be reached for comment Wednesday evening.

Liberal MLA Hugh MacDonald quipped that such loopholes suggest the Lobbyist Act must have been drafted by Rod Love or Kelley Charlebois, two former government aides who have been embroiled in past lobbying controversies. “It’s going to be business as usual,” MacDonald said. “This is just a public-relations exercise.”

Kevin Taft‘s Alberta Liberals have put forward Bill 201: Funding Alberta’s Future Act. Bill 201 would create a number of new endowments and increasing the funding to others such as the long ignored Heritage Savings Trust Fund. Bill 201 would invest 30% of Alberta’s resource revenues into the Heritage Savings Trust Fund and other funds into newly created Post-Secondary Education Endowment Fund, a Humanities, Social Sciences, and Arts Endowment Fund, and an Oppurtunity Fund while also provding funding to slay Alberta’s massive infrastructure debt.

If Premier Stelmach’s weak performance during last week’s Question Period assaults by the opposition are any indication, it’s going to be a baptism-by-fire for Stelmach in his first session as Premier. I wouldn’t count the Tories out yet, but it’s too early to tell how much Stelmach will get burnt.

84%!

This is great!

Voting wrapped up yesterday in a general election that saw undergraduate students at the U of A endorse the Universal Transit Pass by a wide margin in a show of support for affordable transit and the environment.

Students voted 84 per cent in favour of the $75 per term pass that will allow them unlimited access to regular scheduled transit service in Edmonton, St. Albert and Strathcona County. The vote represents the last political hurdle in the long-running process.

“This is a win for public transit, a win for our environment, a win for big ideas, and a win for students working together,” proclaimed Samantha Power, President of the Students’ Union, in a statement given today at the Students’ Union Building.

The final price was the result of lengthy negotiations between the three municipalities, students and the University of Alberta.

Calgary Elbow By-Election Drumheller-Stettler By-Election Jack Hayden Kevin Taft Ralph Klein Shirley McClellan

nomwatch – march 9, 2007

With two upcoming by-elections in Alberta, the Spring Session of the Legislature could play a big role in determining the direction voters in these two ridings end sailing towards. The seats were vacated by former Premier Ralph Klein and former Finance Ministry Shirley McClellan.

In Drumheller-Stettler, consultant and former President of the Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties Jack Hayden is lining up for the PC nomination. Hayden had previously ran for the PC nomination against former MLA Judy Gordon in the former riding of Lacombe-Stettler in 2000. The Alberta Greens have scheduled a nomination meeting for March 5. Kevin Taft’s Alberta Liberals have yet to set a nomination date, but word through the grapevine is that a credible local candidate will step up to the plate.

There should be a full slate of candidates in Drumheller-Stettler, but being one of the deepest backwater conservative strongholds, it will take a strong camapaign to move Drumheller-Stettler any closer to the centre than a deep blue conservative. Look for the main opposition parties to be gunning for strong showings rather than victory.

Calgary Elbow presents a different picture. Located in what some political observers have coined the “Latte Belt,” Calgary Elbow showed strong support for the Alberta Liberals in 2004 against-the-odds of an incumbent Premier. There will likely be a full slate of candidates including Social Credit candidate Trevor Grover (I’m sure Social Credit will hit a highwater mark of 200 votes this time around). The Alberta Liberals have scheduled their nomination meeting for March 22. The Tory nominations in both ridings will occur in mid- to late-April.

I’m predicting both by-elections to occur sometime in June.

Alberta Politics

pomping the speech from the throne.

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date March 8, 2007
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This afternoon Lt. Governor Norman Kwong delivered Alberta’s Speech from the Throne. Being the first Speech from the Throne of the Tory Government under Ed Stelmach, I made sure I was there to see it happen.

Anyone who knows anything about the Speech from the Throne will know that it has more to do with pomp, ceremony, and feel goodery than actual substance or policy. Though brief mentions of policy poped up from time to time in Kwong’s long speech (the delivery was a little slow) it stuck to formula.

Much of the Speech centered around Stelmach’s “Five Priorities” (All of which seem fairly common sensicle).

governing with integrity and transparency;
managing growth pressures;
improving Albertans’ quality of life;
providing safe and secure communities; and
building a strong Alberta.

More substantial points include the creation of a long-needed lobbyist registry, finally dealing with the affordable housing and economic growth crisis, and review of the resource royalty system (all of which had been previously announced).

The Stelmach Tories are now appearing to be jumping on the now all-popular “green” bandwagon with the announcement of the creation of a long-term energy strategy and greenhouse gas emission regulation. Feel goodery aside, I’m not convinced that the Alberta Tories have any real sincere intention to take substantial action on the environment or climate change file. I’ll believe it when I see real action.

This Speech remains atypical of most other speech’s of this type. Hopefully the Spring Session will be a little more exciting.

And of course, the scrums and schmoozing in the Rotunda is where the real action is.

Of note:
– Thanks to the Alberta NDP caucus for my invitation to the Visitor’s Gallery and for letting me in to their pre-Speech Reception at the Legislature Annex.
– Tom Olsen was sporting a slick new suit. I’m sure he’s making a better salary at taxpayer expense than the Calgary Herald would ever afford him.
– Fred Horne is Dave Hancock‘s new Executive Assistant. Horne ran for the Tories in Edmonton Riverview against Alberta Liberal Leader Kevin Taft . Horne recieved 22% of the vote to Taft’s 65%.
– Lots of new Ministers with new hangers on.
– Lots of old Ministers with no hangers on.
– I’m still shocked and disappointed at the job that Todd Babiuk is doing as the Edmonton Journal‘s Legislative Columnist while Graham Thomson is on assignment in Afghanistan. COME BACK, GRAHAM!
– And I think Norman Kwong likes the attention he gets when he enters a room.

Alberta Legislature Alberta Tories Federal Liberals Federal Tories Nominations

in the land of.

Things are moving fast in the land of daveberta and I will have more time for some more quality substancial commentary after the end of this week.

A couple of things…

1. Alberta’s Speech from the Throne is on Wednesday. I’ll be there and will be providing my post-game thoughts following the first Speech from the Throne of the first Ed Stelmach PC government.

2. Ken Chapman and Larry Johnsrude have provided some good commentary on the recent semi-release of PC leadership campaign contributor lists from Ed Stelmach and Dave Hancock. I am in the process of writing a more detailed post about this, so look for it in the near future.

3. Just as the Federal Conservatives have finished nominating their Alberta candidates, the Federal Liberals are now beginning. The Edmonton Centre nomination date has been set for March 24. One of the candidates for nomination happens to be Nicole Martel.

4. Art Spiegelman will be speaking at the University of Alberta on Wednesday night as part of the University of Alberta Students’ Union’s Revolutionary Speakers Series.

5. Finally, on two completely non-political related points, I saw finally saw Borat this weekend and I have tickets to see The Police at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton on June 2nd!

Nonsense

weekend nonsense…

This was forwarded to me… wow…

Alberta Liberals Alberta Tories Democracy Ed Stelmach Kevin Taft The Departed

vanuatu.

First of all, I would just like to say that I was very glad to see The Departed emerge victorious during last weekend’s Academy Awards as Best Picture and Best Director for Martin Scorsese. Well deserved.

If you’ve noticed a break between posts, it has everything to do with the other stuff I keep myself busy with in my other life. I’m actually the campaign manager for a campaign of which I will not mention here. Ask me on March 9.

I’m looking forward to the upcoming Spring session of the Alberta Legislature. Just as I was excited when Alberta Liberal Leader Kevin Taft announced an aggressive legislative agenda in the face of the “Conservative oppositon” as Taft called the Stelmach Tories, my good friend Duncan seems just as excited about Stelmach. It should be interesting to see how the session plays out. Rookie Premier, rookie Ministers, new dynamic within the Tory caucus. Power politics at play. Does the opposition smells blood? All-party committees? Two upcoming by-elections!

Will Alberta be raised to the level of legislative democracy shared by such beacons of democracy as the Republic of Vanuatu and the Federated States of Micronesia? We shall see.

Also, on another note, municipal politics are heating up in Edmonton as Councillors and Councillors-to-be are buying new walking shoes and warming up their campaign engines for an October 2007 election…

daveberta.ca

Yes. I’ve finally caved and bought a domain name.

It’s just being forwarded, so daveberta.blogspot.com still works fine.

If anything, I can just sell it in a couple months and make at least $15 bucks.

Alberta Politics

clint had a point?

“Money is like manure. If you spread it around, it does a lot of good; but if you pile it up in one place, it stinks like hell.” – Clint Murchison

How fitting…

Tax revenue and investment income lift Alberta’s surplus to $7 billion

Spending unchanged from second quarter forecast
Third Quarter Fiscal Highlights
* Revenue is $36.6 billion, an increase of $1.5 billion from second quarter forecast
* Expense is $29.7 billion, a decrease of $40 million from second quarter forecast
* The surplus is forecast at $7 billion, an increase of $1.5 billion from second quarter forecast

Edmonton… Strong business profits and returns in world equity markets are bolstering the province’s bottom line in 2006-07, as reported in the Government of Alberta’s 2006-07 Third Quarter Fiscal Update. Revenue is now forecast to be $4.2 billion higher than budgeted, increasing the forecast surplus to $7 billion.

Al Gore David Suzuki Ed Stelmach Environment

mmm. gold bars.

So… some excitement in Edmonton…

[David] Suzuki said Friday in Calgary that if the premier “doesn’t realize not doing anything about greenhouse gases is going to wreck the economy,” he doesn’t deserve to be a leader, according to a story in the Calgary Herald.

Alberta needs to ease up on oilsands development until industry catches up with more efficient ways of extracting energy, Suzuki said.

Stelmach hit back on Saturday. “Tackling the issue of greenhouse-gas reduction will require more than hot air and grandstanding.”

I agree. It will take action, from our politicians like Stelmach… which we have yet to see any… Stelmach continued…

“Mr. Suzuki’s comments reflect the unproductive emotional rhetoric and personal attacks that distract from efforts to find constructive solutions.”

Well, I’m sure if our political leaders were actually looking for and enacting “constructive solutions” there would be much less “emotional rhetoric” floating around.

I wonder if Mr. Stelmach has seen Al Gore’s now Oscar Award winning Inconvenient Truth?

Affordable Housing Alberta Politics

thursday update.

A couple of things…

– I presented to Alberta’s Affordable Housing Task Force yesterday afternoon in Edmonton. The committee will be traveling Alberta to listen to Albertans thoughts and recommendations on how to solve the affordable housing crisis until February 28. Task force members include MLA’s Len Webber (Calgary Foothills), Bruce Miller (Edmonton Glenora), and Ray Martin (Edmonton Beverly-Clareview) and Edmonton City Councillor Karen Leibovici. See here for the hearing locations and dates.

– Alberta Liberal Leader Kevin Taft delivered an alternative Speech from the Throne Tuesday night at the Royal Museum in Edmonton. Fresh from the release of Taft’s new book Democracy Derailed, last nights event was a packed affair with hundereds of Albertans crowding the theatre to hear what Taft had to say. It was a positive speech and gave Taft the oppurtunity to present his team of MLA’s and candidates along with a positive vision for Alberta’s future. Taft also focused on the need for action to be taken on environmental issues in Alberta.

Though it will be an uphill battle for the 15 MLA caucus, Taft outlined the Alberta Liberal Caucus’ legislative agenda for the upcoming Spring Session which will include a number of Bills including a Sustainable Communities Act, a Consumer Advocate Act, a Child Care Accountability and Accessibility Act, a Restriction on School Fees and Fundraising Act, and legislation that would strengthen water resource management, review gaming in Alberta, require health impact assessments for major government initiatives, and reverse laws designed to hide the results of internal audits for 15 years.

It’s a very interesting twist in Alberta politics how the Alberta Liberals are attempting to turn the tables on the seemingly disorganized Stelmach Government in terms of presenting a strong and united vision for what road Alberta should take.

– Looks like Quebec is off to the polls on March 26.

– I’m off to the wild border city of Lloydminster for the day today (hopefully those rowdy Saskatchewanites won’t be too much of a worry).

Random Fun

hot potato, hot potato.

A little less serious than my previous post, but I found this too funny not to share. Enjoy.

Happy Family Day long weekend to all those lucky Albertans out there.

To the rest of you, enjoy Monday at work. 🙂

Margaret Wente Post-Secondary Education Public Good

wente way off the mark.

Here’s a letter that I emailed to the Globe & Mail yesterday…

Margaret Wente’s column yesterday has bought, hook line and sinker, the argument from McGill Principal Heather Munroe-Blum: low tuition is bad because it doesn’t help people from marginal socioeconomic groups access post-secondary, and it hurt education quality.

The argument misses the point entirely: the question is, is Education a public good or a private good? Primary and secondary schooling is an undisputed public good, and post-secondary is still something of a public good to the extent that it is still somewhat publicly funded; however, post-secondary education being privatized right under our noses in the sense that quality post-secondary is increasingly the exclusive domain of the socioeconomic elite.

Consider the popular argument that lowering tuition would represent a subsidy to wealthy students (and their families) who can already afford to attend — the heart of this argument is an admission that the elite are over-represented, which should itself be a point of serious concern. However, it also ignores the disparate reality that there are a lot of students (let’s say at least the half who emerge with student debt) who struggle to make ends meet and are thus distracted from their studies.

The result is a kind of three-tiered education environment: there are those who can afford to study without financial stress, there are those who can afford to study but only under the condition of financial stress (which is a significant disadvantage), and then there in the third group are people of more than ample aptitude who have written off post-secondary out of aversion to financial stress.

Economists like to say that price sends a strong signal: so far this debate seems to have focused on the notion that high tuition is required for high quality, but the flip-side of this argument is the signal high tuition is sending to young people: ‘higher learning isn’t for everyone, this is just for the best of the best.’ In this sense, it is a question more of values than of value: do we want to distributed advanced learning primarily among the elite, or do we want to make it accessible to all Canadians on a level financial playing field, with room for everyone who is qualified?

pennsylvania the office

salesmen of northeastern pennsylvania…

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date February 15, 2007
No Comments on salesmen of northeastern pennsylvania…

Just because…

Ed Stelmach

tick, tick, tick.

It looks like the Calgary Herald’s new provincial affairs columnist isn’t turning out to be the lapdog that his *predecessor* was:

The clock is ticking on Honest Ed’s regime
The Calgary Herald
Column: Don Braid

Is our new premier Honest Ed, Steady Ed or (as some are cruelly asking) Special Ed?

The voters don’t know, but Premier Stelmach had better provide some answers soon or his drifting interlude could become a tailspin to fading polls.

So far, it’s as if the province is on a blind date with Ed. After an hour he hasn’t thrown up on our shoes or made a grab for the goodies. So far so good — but is there really any chance of a lasting union?

New leaders have about three months to plant a vivid image in the minds of voters. If they fail, opponents will draw the picture for them, and it won’t be pretty. Stelmach, sworn in last Dec. 14, has a month left.

Also, Paul Jackson has an predictably alarmist peice on why Premier Ed Stelmach needs to be ready just in case Stephane Dion and his scary Federal Liberals regain power in Ottawa…