Alberta
Alberta NDP calling on Premier to denounce UCP MLA’s calling for an end to lockdowns
From the Alberta NDP
KENNEY’S SILENCE ALLOWS UCP MLAS TO UNDERMINE PUBLIC HEALTH ORDERS
Jason Kenney must explain to Albertans following COVID-19 public health orders why he has continually failed to take action against the members of his own Caucus who are undermining those orders from a position of authority and putting lives at risk in the process.
On Tuesday, it was revealed that UCP MLA’s Drew Barnes and Angela Pitt had signed up as Members of the “End the Lockdown Caucus”, a group that declares, “lockdowns cause more harm than the virus and must be brought to an end.”
It was also learned Tuesday that senior UCP Cabinet Minister Jason Nixon and UCP Caucus Chair Todd Loewen had joined Drew Barnes in the undermining of public health orders by telling local papers that they would be pushing for a regional re-opening, an action that directly contradicts the advice given by Alberta’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Deena Hinshaw.
“Jason Kenney promised to introduce a culture of discipline to the scandal ridden, arrogant and out-of-touch UCP,” said David Shepherd, NDP Health Critic. “He also promised to build a database of extremists to keep them from taking over the UCP. Instead we see that the extremists are well and truly running the UCP.”
The End the Lockdown Caucus includes, Wildrose Independence Party Leader Paul Hinman, former Separatist MLA Gordon Kessler, MP Derek Sloan, who was expelled from the Conservative Party of Canada for accepting a donation from a white nationalist, and Leader of the People’s Party of Canada, Maxime Bernier.
“Months of Jason Kenney’s failed chaotic leadership is empowering and encouraging the extreme, anti-science members of the UCP,” said Shepherd. “Kenney must discipline these MLAs for endangering Albertans through their reckless and selfish behaviour.”
MLA Pitt stated publicly: “One hundred per cent, more people in the caucus will join us. I tried to work on things internally, but it was not working on the inside”.
Jason Kenney will be speaking to the media at 1pm on Wednesday. If he is serious about protecting the lives and livelihoods of Albertans, he will denounce the dangerous stance taken by his Caucus.
“Jason Kenney must explain why he has allowed a rebellion of anti-health to take over the UCP and why won’t he do a thing to stop it?” Shepherd said. “This Premier’s leadership is either so weak that he can’t stop them, or he is so indifferent to the medical advice of Dr. Hinshaw that he is allowing his Caucus to spread medically false statements during a global pandemic. Either way, this is not the leadership Alberta needs.”
Premier Danielle Smith issued the following statement on the April 2, 2025 U.S. tariff announcement:
“Today was an important win for Canada and Alberta, as it appears the United States has decided to uphold the majority of the free trade agreement (CUSMA) between our two nations. It also appears this will continue to be the case until after the Canadian federal election has concluded and the newly elected Canadian government is able to renegotiate CUSMA with the U.S. administration.
“This is precisely what I have been advocating for from the U.S. administration for months.
“It means that the majority of goods sold into the United States from Canada will have no tariffs applied to them, including zero per cent tariffs on energy, minerals, agricultural products, uranium, seafood, potash and host of other Canadian goods.
“There is still work to be done, of course. Unfortunately, tariffs previously announced by the United States on Canadian automobiles, steel and aluminum have not been removed. The efforts of premiers and the federal government should therefore shift towards removing or significantly reducing these remaining tariffs as we go forward and ensuring affected workers across Canada are generously supported until the situation is resolved.
“I again call on all involved in our national advocacy efforts to focus on diplomacy and persuasion while avoiding unnecessary escalation. Clearly, this strategy has been the most effective to this point.
“As it appears the worst of this tariff dispute is behind us (though there is still work to be done), it is my sincere hope that we, as Canadians, can abandon the disastrous policies that have made Canada vulnerable to and overly dependent on the United States, fast-track national resource corridors, get out of the way of provincial resource development and turn our country into an independent economic juggernaut and energy superpower.”
From the Fraser Institute
By any measure, Alberta is an energy powerhouse—within Canada, but also on a global scale. In 2023, it produced 85 per cent of Canada’s oil and three-fifths of the country’s natural gas. Most of Canada’s oil reserves are in Alberta, along with a majority of natural gas reserves. Alberta is the beating heart of the Canadian energy economy. And energy, in turn, accounts for one-quarter of Canada’s international exports.
Consider some key facts about the province’s energy landscape, as noted in the Alberta Energy Regulator’s (AER) 2023 annual report. Oil and natural gas production continued to rise (on a volume basis) in 2023, on the heels of steady increases over the preceding half decade. However, the dollar value of Alberta’s oil and gas production fell in 2023, as the surging prices recorded in 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine retreated. Capital spending in the province’s energy sector reached $30 billion in 2023, making it the leading driver of private-sector investment. And completion of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project has opened new offshore export avenues for Canada’s oil industry and should boost Alberta’s energy production and exports going forward.
In a world striving to address climate change, Alberta’s hydrocarbon-heavy energy sector faces challenges. At some point, the world may start to consume less oil and, later, less natural gas (in absolute terms). But such “peak” consumption hasn’t arrived yet, nor does it appear imminent. While the demand for certain refined petroleum products is trending down in some advanced economies, particularly in Europe, we should take a broader global perspective when assessing energy demand and supply trends.
Looking at the worldwide picture, Goldman Sachs’ 2024 global energy forecast predicts that “oil usage will increase through 2034” thanks to strong demand in emerging markets and growing production of petrochemicals that depend on oil as the principal feedstock. Global demand for natural gas (including LNG) will also continue to increase, particularly since natural gas is the least carbon-intensive fossil fuel and more of it is being traded in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Against this backdrop, there are reasons to be optimistic about the prospects for Alberta’s energy sector, particularly if the federal government dials back some of the economically destructive energy and climate policies adopted by the last government. According to the AER’s “base case” forecast, overall energy output will expand over the next 10 years. Oilsands output is projected to grow modestly; natural gas production will also rise, in part due to greater demand for Alberta’s upstream gas from LNG operators in British Columbia.
The AER’s forecast also points to a positive trajectory for capital spending across the province’s energy sector. The agency sees annual investment rising from almost $30 billion to $40 billion by 2033. Most of this takes place in the oil and gas industry, but “emerging” energy resources and projects aimed at climate mitigation are expected to represent a bigger slice of energy-related capital spending going forward.
Like many other oil and gas producing jurisdictions, Alberta must navigate the bumpy journey to a lower-carbon future. But the world is set to remain dependent on fossil fuels for decades to come. This suggests the energy sector will continue to underpin not only the Alberta economy but also Canada’s export portfolio for the foreseeable future.
Jock Finlayson
Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute
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