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Alberta

“Federal agency treated ‘Red Deer’ family in an unaccountable, heavy-handed way.” – MLA Jason Stephan

Published

4 years ago

4 minute read

Submitted by Red Deer South MLA Jason Stephan

JASON STEPHAN: Conduct of airport detentions violate our fundamental freedoms

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is the “supreme law of Canada”, recognizing in its preamble, the “supremacy of God and the rule of law”.

Under the Charter, everyone has the “Fundamental Freedoms” of conscience and religion, thought, belief, opinion and expression, peaceful assembly, and association.

Under the Charter, “every citizen of Canada has the right to enter, remain in and leave Canada” and “to pursue the gaining of a livelihood in any province”.

This past weekend, the Public Health Agency of Canada forced a young man from Red Deer arriving from the U.S.A. at the Calgary International Airport into isolated quarantine. The young man had in his possession a negative COVID test result, obtained in good faith prior to departure, and was permitted for boarding, however, did not meet the agency’s particular requirements in landing.

All of this was unknown to the young man’s family, who had not seen him for almost two years, were so excited to see him, and were waiting at airport arrivals to take him home.

This federal agency treated the family in an unaccountable, heavy-handed way. The agency would not tell the young man or his family where he was being taken and for how long. The young man did not have a cell phone and the agency tried to prevent them from even seeing each other. This harshness was unnecessary. The young man’s mother stated that all of this “feels wrong”. She is correct.

The onus of proof is on government to justify limits on our Charter freedoms. Under the Charter, government is required to demonstrate “proportionality” between objectives and limits imposed to achieve them. That in turn, requires demonstration of a “rational connection” between the limit and the objective, and “minimal impairment” of no more than is necessary to accomplish the objective. These foundational Charter principles are to be applied with rigour to government health “measures” to ensure they are “reasonable” and “demonstrably justified”.

The WHO defines health as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”.

Instead of a societal state of “physical, mental and social well-being”, we are seeing increasing societal contention, disconnection, despair, and hopelessness. This is not healthy.

Principled approaches for every day activities are better than prescriptive approaches seeking to regulate the endless varieties of these activities. A principled approach that supports freedom, is less complex or vulnerable to contradiction.

A principled vision of hope is healthy, requiring government to trust adults to govern themselves, allowing them and their families more freedom to carry on the activities of daily living as they individually see fit, in a good faith respecting reasonable health measures and the rights of their neighbors to do the same.

Jason Stephan is the UCP MLA for Red Deer-South

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Alberta

Passenger rail experts from across the world to inform Alberta’s Passenger Rail Master Plan

Published on November 24, 2024

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Alberta’s future runs on rails

Alberta’s government is bringing together passenger rail experts from across the world to share best practices and inform the province’s Passenger Rail Master Plan.

As Alberta experiences record growth and evolving transportation needs, passenger rail infrastructure and services will be vital for enhancing accessibility and connecting communities. To support this, Alberta’s government is developing a Passenger Rail Master Plan to build the optimal passenger rail system for the province.

As part of the development of the plan, Alberta’s government is hosting a one-day forum to provide an opportunity for Alberta communities, industry and experts to collaborate and share information on passenger rail opportunities and challenges. The forum includes experts from Ontario, Quebec, California, Italy, Spain and Japan who are involved in passenger rail procurement, governance and operations. The sessions will allow for the sharing of best practices and lessons learned on passenger rail planning and development.

“Alberta was built by innovators and visionaries who saw potential in our province and its people. They believed that if you could dream it, you could achieve it. We believe there is opportunity and demand for passenger rail services in Alberta. Today’s forum marks an important step forward in the development of our Passenger Rail Master Plan and in achieving our vision for passenger rail.”

Danielle Smith, Premier

In line with the province’s commitment to engaging Albertans throughout the development of the Passenger Rail Master Plan, a survey has been launched to seek public input on passenger rail. Albertans are invited to complete the online survey by Dec. 20 to help shape the future of passenger rail in Alberta. There will be additional opportunities for Albertans to have their say on passenger rail in the future, including regional open houses which will be held in early 2025.

“Feedback from Albertans, Alberta municipalities, Indigenous communities and industry will be critically important to developing passenger rail services in Alberta. I encourage all Albertans to complete the online survey to help inform a shared vision for passenger rail to enhance accessibility, efficiency, and connectivity across the province.”

Devin Dreeshen, Minister of Transportation and Economic Corridors

In April 2024, Alberta’s government shared its vision for passenger rail and announced the development of the Passenger Rail Master Plan for Alberta. The province’s vision is for an Alberta passenger rail system that includes public, private or hybrid passenger rail, including:

  • a commuter rail system for the Calgary area that connects surrounding communities and the Calgary International Airport to downtown
  • a commuter rail system for the Edmonton area that connects surrounding communities and the Edmonton International Airport to downtown
  • passenger rail that runs between Calgary and Edmonton and the Rocky Mountain parks
  • a regional rail line between Calgary and Edmonton, with a local transit hub in Red Deer
  • municipal-led LRT systems in Calgary and Edmonton that integrate with the provincial passenger rail system
  • rail hubs serving the major cities that would provide linkages between a commuter rail system, regional rail routes and municipal-led mass transit systems

The vision includes a province-led “Metrolinx-like” Crown corporation with a mandate to develop the infrastructure and oversee daily operations, fare collection/booking systems, system maintenance, and planning for future system expansion.

Quick facts

  • The Passenger Rail Survey will be open until Dec. 20.
  • Alberta’s Passenger Rail Master Plan is expected to be completed by summer 2025 and will include:
    • a comprehensive feasibility assessment
    • financial and delivery model options
    • governance and operations recommendations
    • a 15-year delivery plan
    • public engagement

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Alberta

REPORT: Alberta municipalities hit with $37 million carbon tax tab in 2023

Published on November 24, 2024

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Grande Prairie. Getty Images photo

From the Canadian Energy Centre

By Laura Mitchell

Federal cash grab driving costs for local governments, driving up property taxes

New data shows the painful economic impact of the federal carbon tax on municipalities.

Municipalities in Alberta paid out more than $37 million in federal carbon taxes in 2023, based on a recent survey commissioned by Alberta Municipal Affairs, with data provided to the Canadian Energy Centre.

About $760,000 of that came from the City of Grande Prairie. In a statement, Mayor Jackie Clayton said “if the carbon tax were removed, City property taxes could be reduced by 0.6 per cent, providing direct financial relief to residents and businesses in Grande Prairie.”

Conducted in October, the survey asked municipal districts, towns and cities in Alberta to disclose the amount of carbon tax paid out for the heating and electrifying of municipal assets and fuel for fleet vehicles.

With these funds, Alberta municipalities could have hired 7,789 high school students at $15 per hour last year with the amount paid to Ottawa.

The cost on municipalities includes:

Lloydminster: $422,248

Calgary: $1,230,300 (estimate)

Medicine Hat: $876,237

Lethbridge: $1,398,000 (estimate)

Grande Prairie: $757,562

Crowsnest Pass: $71,100

Red Deer: $1,495,945

Bonnyville: $19,484

Hinton: $66,829

Several municipalities also noted substantial indirect costs from the carbon tax, including higher rates from vendors that serve the municipality – like gravel truck drivers and road repair providers – passing increased fuel prices onto local governments.

The rising price for materials and goods like traffic lights, steel, lumber and cement, due to higher transportation costs are also hitting the bottom line for local governments.

The City of Grande Prairie paid out $89 million in goods and services in 2023, and the indirect costs of the carbon tax “have had an inflationary impact on those expenses” in addition to the direct costs of the tax.

In her press conference announcing Alberta’s challenge to the federal carbon tax on Oct. 29, 2024, Premier Danielle Smith addressed the pressures the carbon tax places on municipal bottom lines.

“In 2023 alone, the City of Calgary could have hired an additional 112 police officers or firefighters for the amount they sent to Ottawa for the carbon tax,” she said.

In a statement issued on Oct. 7, 2024, Ontario Conservative MP Ryan Williams, shadow minister for international trade, said this issue is nationwide.

“In Belleville, Ontario, the impact of the carbon tax is particularly notable. The city faces an extra $410,000 annually in costs – a burden that directly translates to an increase of 0.37 per cent on residents’ property tax bills.”

There is no rebate yet provided on retail carbon pricing for towns, cities and counties.

In October, the council in Belleville passed a motion asking the federal government to return in full all carbon taxes paid by municipalities in Canada.

The unaltered reproduction of this content is free of charge with attribution to the Canadian Energy Centre.

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