MLA Report Feb 7

Hello Chestermere! It is constantly amazing to me how much talent and expertise there is in this province, and I am humbled everyday by the incredible people I meet, and their willingness to share their expertise with me. This week we were invited to the Schulich School of Engineering to learn about a process whereby deep coal that cannot be mined may be able to be turned into gas through a process known as coal gasification. This process turns the coal into gas, and then captures the CO2 and other gases, separates them for transfer, or uses them on-site to produce electricity. All with minimal surface disturbance! Dr. Chen of the University of Calgary who is truly an amazing person has developed this technology and the sophisticated modeling used to refine it. There are many advantages to this process as well as some concerns that need to be addressed through testing, but as a result Dr. Chen is receiving an award from the Government of Canada for his work and research into this technology. These are the kinds of innovations that are born in Alberta. Dr. Chen has fostered one of the world’s top centres for modeling, attracting students who end up being in high demand worldwide. In addition he has been instrumental in establishing a satellite research facility of the U of C in Beijing! I was so proud to meet Dr. Chen and to find out about this incredible research and the potential for our coal industry.
This week we were told by numerous scholars that Alberta requires a sales tax. Absent was talk about greater efficiency or cuts to Government spending. They believe that our spending is close to other provinces, and since other provinces are doing it why shouldn’t we? I mean you can see how sales taxes have helped Ontario, that shining beacon of fiscal responsibility with the world’s highest non-sovereign debt. Not to be outdone, our Provincial Government is running per capita deficits that are about twice Ontario’s at its worst! The rhetoric that giving rebates to those in need when bringing in a regressive tax is interesting, because if you keep those dollars in their pockets that dollar is actually a dollar. A dollar that has gone through the government bureaucracy is less than a dollar. We would have to have a 5% sales tax to bring in 5 billion dollars to make a dent in the governments debt. The scholars have spoken my friends, what say you?
On the education portfolio, there is never a dull moment. This week we commented on the secrecy around the “most sweeping reform of the school curriculum undertaken in the history of public education in Alberta” according to the Education Minister. This unprecedented curriculum redesign and process is not just “evergreening” or tweaking, it is a pedagogical change that may or may not change the entire way the curriculum is taught from k-9. We have no clarity on who is in in these working groups, nor have we been invited to participate. The only reason we will find out who is in those working groups is because the government was FOIP’d and now must disclose the people working on this project. Why the secrecy? Do you not want to weigh in on what is going to be taught to your children? The previous government spent 7 years and a ton of money of consulting and trying to bring in Inspired Education. It was never fully implemented, and now are we looking at Inspired Education 2.0? Please take the time to check out the “Future Ready” website that endeavors to explain what the government is attempting to do in 6 years. I will be keeping a close eye on this process, and we would like to hear from you.
I also had the privilege of being a panelist at the “Ask Her” Women in Politics event. As the only conservative woman representative there, I was able to speak about my experience in getting elected and the journey that brought me to where I am today. As I said in the panel, I have never felt more treasured or appreciated than I do by my Wildrose brothers and sisters who I work with everyday. I know I will see many more women run in the next elections municipally, provincially and federally.
Finally, I would like to thank Chestermere – Rocky View for giving me the opportunity to represent you again as the Wildrose candidate in the next Provincial election. I am very grateful for the opportunity to continue to represent you, and I am humbled and blessed to represent such amazing people. As always we love to hear from you. Stay strong Alberta, and know that we have your back!