Prentice defends plan for televised address Tuesday
Wildrose accuses the Conservatives of campaigning without an election
Tax hikes are looming as Premier Jim Prentice prepares to speak directly to Albertans and the Progressive Conservative government puts the final touches on the provincial budget that will be released next week.
Two days ahead of the budget, the premier will make a televised address to Albertans on Tuesday at a cost of $75,000, a move derided by the opposition Wildrose as electioneering on the government dime ahead of an almost-certain spring election call.
Speaking to reporters Friday, Prentice denied the speech was campaigning and said it was needed to talk about the fiscal challenges the province faces because of falling oil prices.
Asked about the prospect of new revenue measures — such as tax hikes or higher user fees — Prentice said steps must be taken to deal with ballooning deficits while preserving front-line public services.
“The reason I’m addressing the province on television next week is that there clearly will be implications for all of us,” he said.
In recent weeks, the Progressive Conservative government has ruled out a provincial sales tax, corporate tax increases and changes to Alberta’s energy royalties scheme.
But actions such as the introduction of new health-care premiums, changes to the 10 per cent flat tax on personal income, and hikes to the province’s fuel tax and sin taxes remain on the table.
“These are very concerning times, and we will be fair and measured and balanced,” said Prentice, who declined to provide details.
A special report from TD Economics this week said Alberta must decrease its reliance on energy revenues and urged the province to consider tax reform.
While it portrayed the introduction of a sales tax as Alberta’s best option, the report suggested a more progressive income tax system could lower income inequality and greater long-term economic growth.
Beyond tax measures, the Tory government has said the budget will also include borrowing and significant spending reductions — at one point pegged at 9 per cent — as it grapples with a major revenue hole due to oil prices that have fallen under $50 US a barrel.
Earlier Friday in Calgary, NDP Leader Rachel Notley accused Prentice of taking a page from former PC premier Ralph Klein and the major budget cuts of the 1990s.
“Remember ‘Ralph’s world?’” she said at the annual convention of the Canadian Union of Public Employees Alberta.
“I think Jim’s world looks just as bleak. In Jim’s world, corporate tax breaks are protected while families will face hundreds of dollars in a new health premium ... In Jim’s world, funding is slashed for our hospitals, for our schools.”
Prentice’s televised address won’t be the first time an Alberta premier has taken to the airwaves, with then-premier Alison Redford most recently warning Albertans of the “bitumen bubble” in January of 2013. Prentice’s office said CTV will air the roughly 25-minute speech at 6:30 p.m., less than 48 hours before the government tables its 2015 budget.
The government offered the Wildrose the opportunity to make a televised rebuttal immediately after the speech, but the Opposition turned it down because of the “inexcusable” additional $29,000 cost.
“This is a way for the government to use taxpayer dollars right before an election and use every lever of power they have to get re-elected,” said Wildrose house leader Shayne Saskiw.
However, Liberal Leader David Swann announced late Friday afternoon that his party had accepted an invitation from Prentice to make a televised response.
“If the last year has taught us anything, it is that an effective opposition matters,” Swann said in a statement. “The ability of Albertans to hear another voice, at the same time, and via the same medium ... is good for democracy.”
Emily Woods, spokeswoman for Prentice, said the Liberals were next in the order of the opposition parties and were offered the slot when Wildrose declined. The NDP were not offered airtime.
This is a way for the government to use taxpayer dollars right before an election.