Second UCP debate tonight

LABOUR ISSUES ON TAP AT SECOND UNITED CONSERVATIVE PARTY LEADERSHIP DEBATE

Three candidates for the United Conservative leadership say wholesale sacking of civil servants is not the answer to Alberta’s red ink woes — but they say something has to be done.

Labour relations is on the agenda tonight when the candidates arrive in the Alberta capital to hold their second debate.

Former Wildrose leader Brian Jean says Alberta’s public service is over-managed and needs to use attrition and move people around to deliver the best value for the tax dollar.

“I’ve managed enough businesses to recognize that if you go in and say, ‘Tomorrow I’m going to be firing 20 per cent of you,’ everybody is going to be looking for a new job the next day,” said Jean.

“That doesn’t help anybody. We need these people. Our economy is going to grow again.”

Jean is running to cut $2.6 billion from the budget and says reforming spending practices and reducing jobs through attrition can get the job done.

Alberta’s economy is slowly rebounding from years of sluggish oil prices that drained thousands of jobs from the private sector and billions of dollars from the government’s bottom line.

Premier Rachel Notley has refused to balance the books through deep cuts in public services, saying that would make a bad situation worse. The province is running a $10.5-billion deficit this year and will be $43.3 billion in debt by next spring.

Former Progressive Conservative leader Jason Kenney said that years of rising debt payments, already more than $1 billion a year, will force the government's hand if action isn’t taken now.

“We need to increase economic growth with policies that restore investor confidence in Alberta,” said Kenney.