News
Around Red Deer June 9th – 11th…..
3:06 pm – Officials with Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools are celebrating the honour bestowed upon Allan Mahoney, a teacher at École Secondaire Notre Dame High School who received the Mayor’s Recognition Award on Thursday night for Distinguished Voluntary Service! Mahoney began his volleyball coaching career in 2011. He has coached the Notre Dame Senior Boys Varsity Volleyball Team for the past six years and has dedicated more than 15 hours per week working with students during the volleyball season. He coordinates and runs week-long volleyball camps during the summer for students in Grades 6-12. For the past seven years, Mahoney has coached the Central Alberta Kings Volleyball Club U18 team.
2:36 pm – A big Thank You going out to the Moovers and Groovers adult walking club in Innisfail. Find out why.
2:31 pm – The Town of Innisfail would like to thank everyone who gave their time at the 2017 Mayor and Seniors Garden Party for their contributions in making the event a great success. Read More.
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2:20 pm – The Town of Sylvan Lake is set to party with 1913 Days starting today! Details Here.
1:52 pm – Check out the progress being made on the Laura Avenue extension project underway in Gasoline Alley.
1:25 pm – It’s Child Safety Week and Alberta Health Services (AHS) is reminding all Albertans to make all-terrain vehicle (ATV) safety a priority this week and every week. Read More.
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1:17 pm – The Ross Street Patio Party, Kick it to the Curb and JDRF Telus Walk to Cure Diabetes are all happening in Red Deer this weekend. Find out what else is going on throughout the City.
1:08 pm – The Reining Alberta Spring Classic is underway at Red Deer’s Westerner Park until Sunday (June 11). Read More.
12:15 pm – A Boil Water Advisory has been issued for parts of Red Deer’s Bower neighbourhood. Read More.
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12:08 pm – Residential building picked up in Red Deer last month, as residential permits were valued at $5.8 million in May, surpassing permit values of $3 million in May 2016. Read More.
11:59 am – A Red Deer Mother and Daughter are celebrating a Set For Life Lottery Win! Read More.
11:49 am – Penhold Fire Crews were called to power lines down on Lucina St. and Emma St. in Pnehold early Friday morning (June 9). There is no estimate of when the roads will re-open or when power will be restored. Fortis AB is on scene and working hard to restore service. As of 8:20 am, all Penhold units have been cleared of both scenes by Fortis who have set up road closures in the same locations and are hard at work trying to restore power in all areas of Penhold that are still without power. There are also lines down in the back alley of Fleming Ave. between Emma St. and Lucina St. Residents have been warned not to go into their back yards or the alley until Fortis can make the situation safe. One resident has also suffered from medical distress due to the power outage affecting their medication equipment.
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11:35 am – The City of Red Deer has provided an update on the 67th Street Roundabout construction project. Read More.
11:28 am – Fire crews were called to a small kitchen fire on Hayter Street in Penhold Thursday June 8th. Officials say the source was determined to be a hard plastic container left on the stove top. The cause was the occupant placed the container on the stove inadvertently turning a burner on. There were no injuries and crews cleared from the scene within 40 minutes. Penhold Fire Chief Jim Pendergast would like to remind everyone not to leave combustible materials on a stove or other potentially hot surface. Damage is estimated at less than $1000.00. 1 unit and 5 firefighters responded.
11:18 am – Innisfail RCMP were on patrol on highway 2 on June 7th and observed a vehicle failing to maintain the centre lane. A traffic stop was initiated with the vehicle, upon approach to the passenger’s side of the vehicle Police observed a zip-lock bag of marihuana in a bag on the passenger seat. Read More.
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11:11 am – Motorists can expect delays as construction on 32 Street starts on Monday, June 12. Details Here.
11:04 am – Red Deer RCMP arrested a number of people this week who were found to be breaching various court-imposed conditions or who had failed to appear in court on earlier charges. Read More.
10:52 am – Red Deer RCMP are looking for public assistance to identify the man who robbed a north end gas station at knifepoint at approximately 12:30 am on June 8. Read More.
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10:43 am – Rainfall Warnings have been issued for the Rocky Mountain House – Caroline and Nordegg Regions today. Details Here.
10:35 am – Good news to pass along regarding a missing Red Deer woman. Mounties say 26 year old Christina Linthorne has been located and RCMP thank the public for their assistance.
10:28 am – The Recreation Centre in Red Deer will close to the public this weekend, as the Catalina Swim Club hosts their annual “Freeze or Fry” swim meet. Read More.
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10:22 am – The City of Red Deer held it’s annual Mayor’s Recognition Awards at the Sheraton Hotel Thursday night. The award recipients joined the ranks of the nearly one thousand outstanding citizens who have crossed the stage between 1990 and today. Read More.
10:16 am – Your chance to part with your no longer needed but still useful items happens this weekend. Kick it to the Curb in Red Deer runs Saturday, June 10th and Sunday, June 11th. Read More.
10:10 am – Ross Street Patio Parties are back today and Red Deerians are invited to celebrate at the official kick-off event at 5 p.m. Friday, June 9, featuring St. James Gate. Read More.
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10:05 am – Some road closures from Red Deer motorists to make note of over the next few days. Find out where.
9:54 am – The Town of Sylvan Lake has partnered with the Sylvan Lake Chamber of Commerce, and Days Inn – Sylvan Lake to host approximately 25 travel agents from Alberta, for a weekend of enjoying all that Sylvan Lake has to offer. The Familiarization Tour runs Saturday, June 10th and Sunday, June 11th.
9:47 am – It’s Aboriginal Day at Ecole Mother Teresa School in Sylvan Lake. The event will kick-off with an Aboriginal dance performance by a family from the school, and will honour First Nations, Inuit, and Métis cultures by participating in Aboriginal games, learning about Aboriginal art, making bannock and participating in a variety of hands-on activities related to our Aboriginal peoples.
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9:41 am – They’re striking up the band at St. Elizabeth Seton School in Red Deer today. The Grade 5 students will present what they’ve learned in band class in a performance to the school community today (June 9).
9:35 am – It’s track and Fun Day at St. Teresa of Avila School in Red Deer today (June 9). Students and staff will gather as a community and take part in this fun-filled day. It includes outdoor activities and a hot dog BBQ provided by the parent council. In case of inclement weather, Tuesday, June 13 will be the alternate day.
9:10 am – Ecole Secondaire Lindsay Thurber Comprehensive High School in Red Deer is hosting a Spring Handball Tournament tomorrow on Saturday, June 10th. The event runs from 9:00 am – 6:30 pm.
From the Fraser Institute
By Alex Whalen and Tegan Hill
Back in the summer at a meeting in Halifax, several provincial premiers discussed a lawsuit meant to force the federal government to make changes to Canada’s equalization program. The suit—filed by Newfoundland and Labrador and backed by British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Alberta—effectively argues that the current formula isn’t fair. But while the question of “fairness” can be subjective, its clear the equalization program is broken.
In theory, the program equalizes the ability of provinces to deliver reasonably comparable services at a reasonably comparable level of taxation. Any province’s ability to pay is based on its “fiscal capacity”—that is, its ability to raise revenue.
This year, equalization payments will total a projected $25.3 billion with all provinces except B.C., Alberta and Saskatchewan to receive some money. Whether due to higher incomes, higher employment or other factors, these three provinces have a greater ability to collect government revenue so they will not receive equalization.
However, contrary to the intent of the program, as recently as 2021, equalization program costs increased despite a decline in the fiscal capacity of oil-producing provinces such as Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador. In other words, the fiscal capacity gap among provinces was shrinking, yet recipient provinces still received a larger equalization payment.
Why? Because a “fixed-growth rule,” introduced by the Harper government in 2009, ensures that payments grow roughly in line with the economy—even if the gap between richer and poorer provinces shrinks. The result? Total equalization payments (before adjusting for inflation) increased by 19 per cent between 2015/16 and 2020/21 despite the gap in fiscal capacities between provinces shrinking during this time.
Moreover, the structure of the equalization program is also causing problems, even for recipient provinces, because it generates strong disincentives to natural resource development and the resulting economic growth because the program “claws back” equalization dollars when provinces raise revenue from natural resource development. Despite some changes to reduce this problem, one study estimated that a recipient province wishing to increase its natural resource revenues by a modest 10 per cent could face up to a 97 per cent claw back in equalization payments.
Put simply, provinces that generally do not receive equalization such as Alberta, B.C. and Saskatchewan have been punished for developing their resources, whereas recipient provinces such as Quebec and in the Maritimes have been rewarded for not developing theirs.
Finally, the current program design also encourages recipient provinces to maintain high personal and business income tax rates. While higher tax rates can reduce the incentive to work, invest and be productive, they also raise the national standard average tax rate, which is used in the equalization allocation formula. Therefore, provinces are incentivized to maintain high and economically damaging tax rates to maximize equalization payments.
Unless premiers push for reforms that will improve economic incentives and contain program costs, all provinces—recipient and non-recipient—will suffer the consequences.
Authors:
National
Liberals, NDP admit closed-door meetings took place in attempt to delay Canada’s next election
From LifeSiteNews
Pushing back the date would preserve the pensions of some of the MPs who could be voted out of office in October 2025.
Aides to the cabinet of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed that MPs from the Liberal and New Democratic Party (NDP) did indeed hold closed-door “briefings” to rewrite Canada’s elections laws so that they could push back the date of the next election.
The closed-door talks between the NDP and Liberals confirmed the aides included a revision that would guarantee some of its 28 MPs, including three of Trudeau’s cabinet members, would get a pension.
Allen Sutherland, who serves as the assistant cabinet secretary, testified before the House of Commons affairs committee that the changes to the Elections Act were discussed in the meetings.
“We attended a meeting where the substance of that proposal was discussed,” he said, adding that his “understanding is the briefing was primarily oral.”
According to Sutherland, as reported by Blacklock’s Reporter, it was only NDP and Liberal MPs who attended the secret meetings regarding changes to Canada’s Elections Act via Bill C-65, An Act to Amend the Canada Elections Act before the bill was introduced in March.
As reported by LifeSiteNews before, the Liberals were hoping to delay the 2025 federal election by a few days in what many see as a stunt to secure pensions for MPs who are projected to lose their seats. Approximately 80 MPs would qualify for pensions should they sit as MPs until at least October 27, 2025, which is the newly proposed election date. The election date is currently set for October 20, 2025.
Sutherland noted when asked by Conservative MP Luc Berthold that he recalled little from the meetings, but he did confirm he attended “two meetings of that kind.”
“Didn’t you find it unusual that a discussion about amending the Elections Act included only two political parties and excluded the others?” Berthold asked.
Sutherland responded, “It’s important to understand what my role was in those meetings which was simply to provide background information.”
Berthold then asked, “You nevertheless suggested amendments to the legislation including a change of dates?”
“My role was to provide information,” replied Sutherland, who added he could not provide the exact dates of the meetings.
MPs must serve at least six years to qualify for a pension that pays $77,900 a year. Should an election be called today, many MPs would fall short of reaching the six years, hence Bill C-65 was introduced by the Liberals and NDP.
The Liberals have claimed that pushing back the next election date is not over pensions but due to “trying to observe religious holidays,” as noted by Liberal MP Mark Gerretsen.
“Conservatives voted against this bill,” Berthold said, as they are “confident of winning re-election. We don’t need this change.”
Trudeau’s popularity is at a all-time low, but he has refused to step down as PM, call an early election, or even step aside as Liberal Party leader.
As for the amendments to elections laws, they come after months of polling in favour of the Conservative Party under the leadership of Pierre Poilievre.
A recent poll found that 70 percent of Canadians believe the country is “broken” as Trudeau focuses on less critical issues. Similarly, in January, most Canadians reported that they are worse off financially since Trudeau took office.
Additionally, a January poll showed that 46 percent of Canadians expressed a desire for the federal election to take place sooner rather than the latest mandated date in the fall of 2025.
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