MLA report March 23

Hello Chestermere! I did not realize that this was the year of the rat! Who knew? I guess the Government did! As fortune would have it rats are quick witted, smart, adaptable, resourceful, and kind creatures if you follow the Chinese Zodiac. Perhaps the Government members should consider spending some time with Albertans. Well, get ready to adapt as we have been told that we have a Government that is trying to make life better for you. I’m sure if you were watching on budget day, and believed the words of the Government about “green shoots” showing you will remain hopeful that this budget is a foundation for a return to economic growth. They claim their budget will pull us out of the economic downturn. I am all for optimism, truly I am, but the numbers don’t lie. They are going to have to tax us a whole lot more if they are going to find the capital for all their promises! We are heading to another over $10 Billion deficit. By the time they are done “helping” us interest payments ALONE will be $2.3 Billion per year. This is mortgaging our children’s future, and remember, the $2.3 Billion is just the interest, and not debt repayment. This Government is reduced to flinging dirt, and name calling during session and especially during question period as it has no other recourse to defend itself. It is a wounded animal, and it is fighting for its last breath. The government has gone “all in” on the one thing that it has blamed for all its problems…oil prices. They believe that we will be at $70/barrel in the near future and that is how they intend to pay back the debt. I find that very interesting. The way they are increasing spending even $70 oil won’t save them. The last 20 months have been full of Government stories about “diversification”, and not relying solely on the revenues of this natural resource. They have capped oil sand productions, and they have created a capacity market for electricity where they will be able to hide the cost from you as they jack up the price and pile it into other types of taxation. They have taken credit for 2 pipelines that needed repairs, and needed doubling. They call our oil dirty, and they call you embarrassing cousins, “sewer rats” and anything else that comes to mind because they are in power and think they know better than you. This is a condescending, top down government and we see this in the handling of the curriculum redesign, and the lack of clarity around that.
The government has (finally) decided to hire 35 new crown prosecutors to help with the backlog of cases in our justice system. Right now the situation is so bad that cases of drunk driving, sexual assault and other serious crimes are walking. They are bailing the boat not fixing the leaks. This system needs to be fixed and not with a bandaid. This should be a priority. Instead we get “free” light bulbs. By the way, I saw 8 LED bulbs for $18.00 at Costco. Of course, they didn’t come with “free” installation so I guess I better leave it to the experts the Government has hired from Ontario.
I would like to thank the Chestermere Recreation Centre for being the first Centre to promote Happy Acts. This organization is going around the world to promote Big Brothers and Big Sisters and are getting us to write down and participate in doing nice things for each other. It was a great event at the Rec Centre this past weekend and a big thank you to Vicki Klinger for inviting Ann Hutter, Brittany Voorberg from Big Brothers and Sisters, and the amazing crew of “Happy Acts” buddies. I would like to thank the Chestermere Whitecappers for inviting me and my son Sehran to sing at the St. Patrick’s bash, and for the delicious vegetarian Irish Stew. I was also honoured to attend the Janus Academy Spring Gala in support of their educational efforts on behalf of autistic children.
I am looking forward to seeing you on Saturday, April 8th with Brian Jean 6-9 PM at the MPP room for a chat about the future of conservatives in our province. As always, we love to hear from you!