Alberta
Province piling on the prizes to push people towards covid vaccination

Win NHL and CFL prizes for getting vaccinated
A new Open for Summer Lottery draw will reward Albertans who have received their first COVID-19 vaccine with prize packages from the Edmonton Oilers, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Elks and Calgary Stampeders.
More than 1.6 million Albertans have already entered the Open for Summer Lottery, which currently includes three draws for $1 million, travel prizes from Air Canada and WestJet, and prizes from the Calgary Stampede.
The new draw will give every Albertan with their first dose who registers for the Open for Summer Lottery by July 22 the chance to win season tickets for football, VIP hockey packages and rounds of golf in Kananaskis. Winners will be announced on July 29.
To date, more than 71.7 per cent of eligible Albertans have stepped up for their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, including 38.6 per cent who are now fully vaccinated with two doses.
“We’ve all missed the thrill of watching our favourite teams play to the roar of a cheering crowd. Thanks to Albertans’ hard work at getting vaccinated, we can get back to many of our favourite pastimes and sports as we safely open for summer. These prizes will help welcome fans back to their seats and are yet another incentive to get vaccinated as soon as you can.”
“I encourage Albertans to continue to book their doses if they have not already done so. Getting vaccinated will help Albertans protect themselves and their communities, and provides a chance to win one of these incredible prizes.”
“The Edmonton Oilers Hockey Club is pleased to support this very important effort to get Albertans vaccinated. While we were fortunate to have had the opportunity to play hockey this season, Rogers Place is not the same without our amazing fans. Getting vaccinated is a vital step to welcoming fans back this fall.”
“We all agree that getting vaccinated is a critical step to defeat what has been facing us all. Awareness about being a part of getting vaccinated is also vital and the new Edmonton Elks are pleased to join with our other provincial sports team colleagues to help.”
“Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation is happy to support the Alberta government in encouraging Albertans to get vaccinated. The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted our lives for more than a year. Getting your shot will help end the pandemic and allow each of us to get back to who and what we love. We can’t wait to welcome you back to McMahon Stadium and the Scotiabank Saddledome. Let’s get back together!”
Edmonton Oilers
- One winner will receive a prize package to host 20 people at an Oilers 2021-22 regular season home game in the food-inclusive Sky Lounge at Rogers Place, with a visit from an Oilers alumnus.
- One winner will receive an Oilers VIP Package, which includes a pair of lower bowl tickets for an Oilers 2021-22 regular season home game, Oilers jerseys, a VIP tour with an Oilers alumnus and dinner at Studio 99.
- One winner will receive four Loge Ledge Tickets to a 2021-22 Battle of Alberta Game at Rogers Place, dinner at Studio 99, Oilers jerseys and a visit from an Oilers alumnus.
Calgary Flames
- One winner will receive a prize package to host 20 people in a Terrace Suite at the Scotiabank Saddledome with food and beverage and a visit from a Flames alumnus.
- One winner will receive a Flames VIP package, which includes a pair of Telus Club seats for a Flames regular season game, dinner at the Telus Club, Flames jerseys and a visit with a Flames alumnus.
- One winner will receive a Battle of Alberta package, which includes four tickets in the Telus Club for Flames versus Oilers, dinner, Flames jerseys and visit with a Flames Alumnus.
Edmonton Elks
- Three winners will receive one pair of Season Seats with merchandise packages.
- One winner will receive one Luxury Suite package for one game in Edmonton for 10 people, with food provided.
Calgary Stampeders
- Three winners will receive one pair of Season Seats with merchandise packages.
- One winner will receive one Luxury Suite package for one game in Calgary for 10 people, with food provided.
Kananaskis Country Golf Course
- One tee time for 18 holes for four people. Valid until Oct. 10.
Book your shot and enter to win
Anyone who has already entered the Open for Summer Lottery does not need to re-register for this new sports prize draw.
More than $3 million in cash and prizes is available through the Open for Summer Lottery. All Albertans aged 18-plus are eligible to register for the remaining lottery draws once they’ve received both doses of their COVID-19 vaccine.
Winners will be required to confirm their immunization status. A complete list of rules is available online at alberta.ca/lottery.
Albertans can book a COVID-19 vaccine appointment through AHS online, participating pharmacies or by calling 811. Select clinic locations across the province continue to offer first doses on a walk-in basis.
Alberta’s government is responding to the COVID-19 pandemic by protecting lives and livelihoods with precise measures to bend the curve, sustain small businesses and protect Alberta’s health-care system.
Quick facts
- Alberta’s Open for Summer Plan safely eases restrictions in three stages as vaccination targets are reached and hospitalizations decline.
- To be eligible for the lottery, you must:
- Opt in by registering at alberta.ca/lottery.
- Reside in Alberta at the time of entry and draw.
- Be 18 years of age and older.
- Be able to provide proof of your immunization status.
- Please visit alberta.ca/lottery for a complete list of rules.
- Any Albertan 18 or older who received approved vaccines out of province is also eligible, provided they have submitted proof of vaccination to AHS and meet all other eligibility criteria.
Alberta
Low oil prices could have big consequences for Alberta’s finances

From the Fraser Institute
By Tegan Hill
Amid the tariff war, the price of West Texas Intermediate oil—a common benchmark—recently dropped below US$60 per barrel. Given every $1 drop in oil prices is an estimated $750 million hit to provincial revenues, if oil prices remain low for long, there could be big implications for Alberta’s budget.
The Smith government already projects a $5.2 billion budget deficit in 2025/26 with continued deficits over the following two years. This year’s deficit is based on oil prices averaging US$68.00 per barrel. While the budget does include a $4 billion “contingency” for unforeseen events, given the economic and fiscal impact of Trump’s tariffs, it could quickly be eaten up.
Budget deficits come with costs for Albertans, who will already pay a projected $600 each in provincial government debt interest in 2025/26. That’s money that could have gone towards health care and education, or even tax relief.
Unfortunately, this is all part of the resource revenue rollercoaster that’s are all too familiar to Albertans.
Resource revenue (including oil and gas royalties) is inherently volatile. In the last 10 years alone, it has been as high as $25.2 billion in 2022/23 and as low as $2.8 billion in 2015/16. The provincial government typically enjoys budget surpluses—and increases government spending—when oil prices and resource revenue is relatively high, but is thrown into deficits when resource revenues inevitably fall.
Fortunately, the Smith government can mitigate this volatility.
The key is limiting the level of resource revenue included in the budget to a set stable amount. Any resource revenue above that stable amount is automatically saved in a rainy-day fund to be withdrawn to maintain that stable amount in the budget during years of relatively low resource revenue. The logic is simple: save during the good times so you can weather the storm during bad times.
Indeed, if the Smith government had created a rainy-day account in 2023, for example, it could have already built up a sizeable fund to help stabilize the budget when resource revenue declines. While the Smith government has deposited some money in the Heritage Fund in recent years, it has not created a dedicated rainy-day account or introduced a similar mechanism to help stabilize provincial finances.
Limiting the amount of resource revenue in the budget, particularly during times of relatively high resource revenue, also tempers demand for higher spending, which is only fiscally sustainable with permanently high resource revenues. In other words, if the government creates a rainy-day account, spending would become more closely align with stable ongoing levels of revenue.
And it’s not too late. To end the boom-bust cycle and finally help stabilize provincial finances, the Smith government should create a rainy-day account.
Alberta
Governments in Alberta should spur homebuilding amid population explosion

From the Fraser Institute
By Tegan Hill and Austin Thompson
In 2024, construction started on 47,827 housing units—the most since 48,336 units in 2007 when population growth was less than half of what it was in 2024.
Alberta has long been viewed as an oasis in Canada’s overheated housing market—a refuge for Canadians priced out of high-cost centres such as Vancouver and Toronto. But the oasis is starting to dry up. House prices and rents in the province have spiked by about one-third since the start of the pandemic. According to a recent Maru poll, more than 70 per cent of Calgarians and Edmontonians doubt they will ever be able to afford a home in their city. Which raises the question: how much longer can this go on?
Alberta’s housing affordability problem reflects a simple reality—not enough homes have been built to accommodate the province’s growing population. The result? More Albertans competing for the same homes and rental units, pushing prices higher.
Population growth has always been volatile in Alberta, but the recent surge, fuelled by record levels of immigration, is unprecedented. Alberta has set new population growth records every year since 2022, culminating in the largest-ever increase of 186,704 new residents in 2024—nearly 70 per cent more than the largest pre-pandemic increase in 2013.
Homebuilding has increased, but not enough to keep pace with the rise in population. In 2024, construction started on 47,827 housing units—the most since 48,336 units in 2007 when population growth was less than half of what it was in 2024.
Moreover, from 1972 to 2019, Alberta added 2.1 new residents (on average) for every housing unit started compared to 3.9 new residents for every housing unit started in 2024. Put differently, today nearly twice as many new residents are potentially competing for each new home compared to historical norms.
While Alberta attracts more Canadians from other provinces than any other province, federal immigration and residency policies drive Alberta’s population growth. So while the provincial government has little control over its population growth, provincial and municipal governments can affect the pace of homebuilding.
For example, recent provincial amendments to the city charters in Calgary and Edmonton have helped standardize building codes, which should minimize cost and complexity for builders who operate across different jurisdictions. Municipal zoning reforms in Calgary, Edmonton and Red Deer have made it easier to build higher-density housing, and Lethbridge and Medicine Hat may soon follow suit. These changes should make it easier and faster to build homes, helping Alberta maintain some of the least restrictive building rules and quickest approval timelines in Canada.
There is, however, room for improvement. Policymakers at both the provincial and municipal level should streamline rules for building, reduce regulatory uncertainty and development costs, and shorten timelines for permit approvals. Calgary, for instance, imposes fees on developers to fund a wide array of public infrastructure—including roads, sewers, libraries, even buses—while Edmonton currently only imposes fees to fund the construction of new firehalls.
It’s difficult to say how long Alberta’s housing affordability woes will endure, but the situation is unlikely to improve unless homebuilding increases, spurred by government policies that facilitate more development.
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