Liberals issue demands under minority rule
Liberal Leader Raj Sherman has laid out his conditions for keeping a Wildrose or Tory minority government afloat — demanding his party fill the posts of deputy premier and health minister. While campaigning in Calgary, Sherman acknowledged Monday it would take an “Alberta miracle” for his party to form government following the April 23 election.
With that in mind, Sherman said he would work in an unprecedented coalition with one of the two rightof-centre parties if Liberal MLAS receive, at minimum, three key spots — a position on Treasury Board, and the portfolios of deputy premier and minister of health.
“We would support the government if they gave us the tools to fix the public health system, absolutely,” Sherman said in an interview.
An emergency room doctor, Sherman still believes it was the PC party that created problems in the health system and other parts of government. “I’m probably more leery of them than the Wildrose.”
However, the Liberal leader believes Alberta is headed for minority government one way or another, and he doesn’t want the province plunged into a new election within months. He said a stable period of at least two years could be used to mend the province’s health-care system.
“I’m willing to work with anyone who’s willing to compromise,” said Sherman, who is running his first campaign as leader.
Sherman said his starting point on negotiations is “deputy premier and health minister and a position on Treasury Board.
“Those details will have to be worked out the day after the election. If there’s a minority government, and we control the balance of power, we’re in the position of negotiating.”
The Liberal leader is calling for Albertans to vote for his party to be the “moral compass” of the legislature. But with polls showing his party at around 11 to 13 per cent povincewide, it’s uncertain how many Liberal MLAS will be elected.
Mount Royal University political analyst David Taras said he’s not sure Sherman’s demands are realistic. “There may not be enough Liberal MLAS to fill those positions.”
But Taras said Sherman’s pitch may convince some voters his party can play an important role in the next legislature, although there’s no strong Canadian tradition of coalition governments.
Speaking in Calgary, NDP Leader Brian Mason said it’s “extremely premature” to start talking about conditions in a minority government.
Though his party is looking at similarly low numbers in the polls, Mason said he’s still focused on getting more NDP MLAS elected. “I wouldn’t want to negotiate through the media,” he said
During a Calgary Herald-edmonton Journal online debate on Monday, Sherman asked the Wildrose and PC leaders whether they would agree to make him their health minister in a minority government.
“We’ll have an interesting chat about that after the election, but right now we’re working toward electing a majority,” said Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith.
While not speaking directly to Sherman’s demands, Smith later said she thought Prime Minister Stephen Harper took the correct approach when it comes to a minority situation, working “with parties in a loose coalition on issues where you can agree, not a formal coalition.”
PC Leader Alison Redford laughed off the question Monday evening when asked by a reporter about Sherman’s conditions.
“When I first got involved in politics, one of the things I was told was to never answer hypothetical questions. And I’m thinking that’s a pretty hypothetical question,” she said.
On Monday, Sherman went into greater detail regarding his party’s fiscal plan to place slightly higher taxes on wealthy Albertans and big companies. The extra revenue would go toward health care, education and care for seniors.
WITH FILES FROM CHRIS VARCOE, JAMES WOOD AND DARCY HENTON, CALGARY HERALD, AND KEITH GEREIN, EDMONTON JOURNAL. KCRYDERMAN@CALGARYHERALD.COM