Freedom Conservative Party secures caucus funding
Alberta’s newest political party will receive taxpayer funds to help run its one-member caucus.
The Freedom Conservative party, led by Strathmore-Brooks MLA Derek Fildebrandt, asked for the cash Thursday at the Legislative Assembly’s member services committee.
His argument was simple: the single-MLA Liberal party gets a leader’s allowance and research dollars, as did the Alberta Party when it was a one-man show, so his fledgling caucus should, too.
Fildebrandt was originally voted in under the Wildrose banner. He followed his colleagues to the United Conservative Party when it was formed, but was turfed following a series of controversies. He sat briefly as an Independent before creating the FCP.
The committee voted unanimously to approve the cash, but not without grumbles about the thorny caucus funding issue.
The problem is Alberta has no hard and fast rules about how many MLAs a party must have to be considered an official caucus, leaving the legislature flying by the seat of its pants when it comes to funding decisions.
It’s something a cross-party subgroup of the committee has been grappling with for months, but it will soon have some answers.
On Thursday, subcommittee chair Thomas Dang, NDP MLA for Edmonton-South West, said his group will address official party status rules in a report due to be released in the next few weeks.
With a lack of clarity around caucus funding, MLAs based their approval of Fildebrandt’s request on precedent. Fildebrandt said he’s not sure how much he’ll get.
“Right now, the Alberta legislature is in a transitional time. We have a number of single-member caucuses. We have an Independent. We have a bit of an odd situation ... but I don’t think that should disentitle smaller parties from receiving the support they need,” said Greg Clark, MLA for Calgary-Elbow, who fought for Alberta Party caucus funding when he was its only MLA.
“I think that it is important that we recognize there is a fixed amount of work to simply do the job, irrespective of how large or small your caucus may be.”
Dang ’s subcommittee also will look into MLA mileage claims.
The issue came up over the summer, when New Democrat MLA Jessica Littlewood claimed almost $35,000 in mileage.
Although the per-kilometre allowance for MLAs is seven cents lower than that of the public service, they’re entitled to a host of other benefits on the taxpayer dime, including fuel, oil changes and car washes.
Fildebrandt called that a “generous regime of reimbursement” and questioned whether it’s comparable to the private sector.
Dang agreed and proposed his subcommittee lead the mileage process review.