MLA Report Sept 17

Hello All
This week we all awoke to the various images of Syrian Refugees that have died trying to reach safety. Men, women and Children of all ages and backgrounds are fleeing persecution, and are risking their very lives to reach freedom. We all lost sleep over the images little Aylan Kurdi washed up on the shore, and again we hug our own and those of our neighbours a little more closely. We need to find ways to actually help these folks, and not for political gain, but to truly help.
Last week there were many discussions around Inspiring Education, Discovery Math, and high school fees as kids head back to school. The money seems to be going in the wrong direction, and not to the kids. The massive increases in spending do not seem to be having any positive effect in the areas where they are most needed. The higher school fees are evidence of that. Mandatory school fees are a regressive tax and Wildrose policy states that they should be abolished.
With respect to Inspiring Education, Mark Smith the Wildrose Shadow Minister of Education stated:
Alberta Education has shifted from its role of establishing standards and developing curriculum to mandating how teachers should teach. It is time to get back to the basics. For more information please check out the article in the Herald from Wednesday September 9th. Or for further information www.albertansforeducation.com.
You may have heard the controversy around Minister Phillips talking about Red Deer having the worst quality air in the country. We need clearer information and some insight outside of the information that was presented by the Minister with regards to air quality. The same day this statement was issued on September 9th, Alberta Environments own Air Quality Heath Index showed a low health risk of 2. We hope to see more moderation with discussions like this and less ideology and knee jerk reactions to a very complex and important issue. Clean air, protecting the environment, jobs and the economy are on everyone’s priority list.
We had the distinct pleasure of meeting with many Landon residents this past week. We had some great discussions around Health Care initiatives with medical professionals, and with the Community Collaborative on needed infrastructure. Lisa Baker, Corrie Carrobourgh, Tara Nichols, Bob Thomson, Travis Tweit, and Chrissy Craig shared their passion for improving Langdon with us. We will be helping as much as possible. We also held an open house at Prairie Grounds Coffee House where we discussed many of the issues of the day around the table. This is our favorite kind of politics.
I hope you all enjoyed the Chestermere Country Fair and Springbank Fall Fair September 12, which unfortunately were on the same day this year. Check out the Rotary Amazing Race on September 19 in Chestermere. Hope to meet many of you before the Legislature resumes sitting on October 26.