Lesser Slave Lake MLA Scott Sinclair, rusticated from the United Conservative Party Caucus by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith for trying too hard to look out for his rural constituents, sure has been quiet lately. So quiet, indeed, one almost wonders if the Independent MLA from the riding 250 kilometres northwest of Edmonton is about to […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
UCP moves to spike inconveniently fair Electoral Boundaries Commission report
Alberta’s United Conservative Party Government served notice in the provincial Legislature yesterday morning it intends to toss out the entire report of the 2025-2026 Electoral Boundaries Commission. Instead, the motion would spike the commission’s recommendation and hand the job off to a special MLA committee than can be depended upon to act in the partisan […]
Posted inCanadian Politics
Whether we Canadians like it or not, Pierre Poilievre is waiting around for us to come to our senses and vote for him
Pierre Poilievre has a message for Canadians: Don’t worry! I’m not going anywhere! I’ll be right here when you decide you want me again. And if you don’t think you need me, I’ll be right here anyway, whether you like it or not! Didn’t we just tell the guy for the second time in a […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Polls and rumours of polls offer sometimes contradictory indications of Alberta’s political future
OK, people, with a provincial election expected next year, we are entering the season of polls and rumours of polls, and the results are so far, shall we say, murky. At least three pollsters have been in the field in Alberta in the past few weeks. Angus Reid Institute was busy polling from March 11 […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
So long Viktor Orbán! The times, they are a changin’ … but can Wild Rose MAGA buck the trend?
So long, Viktor Orbán! Looks like almost nobody was sorry to see Mr. Orbán sent packing by voters yesterday, least of all in Hungary where he spent the previous 16 years creating a much-imitated template of a creeping far-right takeover of democratic institutions. That “almost” in the previous sentence is doing a lot of work, […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Alberta libraries, staff, city councillors denounce Dan Williams’ book censorship scheme
If Alberta Municipal Affairs Minister Dan Williams’ scheme to ban books in public libraries is intended as way to distract voters from the deluge of uncomplimentary Globe and Mail stories about the United Conservative Government’s metastasizing dodgy health care contracts scandal, he might want to pick another distraction. Public libraries are among the most beloved […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Never mind the law, public opinion, or common sense: Danielle Smith will ensure there’s a separation referendum on the ballot
The spectre of separation haunting Alberta nowadays may deeply divide the province, but almost everyone seems to agree about one thing: No matter what happens, no matter what the courts say, no matter whether or not the separatists really have enough signatures to get a referendum on the ballot, Premier Danielle Smith will see to […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Dan Williams’ proposed book ban aims to gin up a moral panic ‘with no basis in reality’
Interesting question: Has Dan Williams, Alberta’s minister of municipal affairs and de facto chief censor, ever been inside a public library? If he ever had been, he’d know perfectly well that children are not exposed to pornography in Alberta public libraries – unlike, say, on daddy’s smart phone. “There is absolutely no evidence for the […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Your Easter read: Danielle Smith is set to head to Red Deer-a-Lago for ‘Premier’s Annual Christian Summit’
Perhaps you’ve seen advertisements on social media for “The Premier’s Annual Christian Summit” on May 4 in Red Deer and wondered, What the Hell? If so, you’re not alone. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is not exactly known for her piety. In the past, she has described herself as agnostic, which nowadays is usually just a […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
The goal of Bill 25 is entrenching the UCP’s ideology in classrooms, and suppressing everything else – it won’t work
You can tell from its title that Alberta’s Bill 25, an Act to Remove Politics and Ideology from Classrooms and Amend the Education Act, isn’t an entirely serious piece of legislation. This is true notwithstanding Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides’ claim that “these changes strengthen accountability, reinforce neutrality and respect, and make it clear that politics […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Tough love? Will federal New Democrats kick out the Alberta NDP?
United Conservative Party strategists are said to be in a panic about the possibility the federal New Democratic Party is pondering severing ties with the Alberta NDP. Astute observers of Canadian politics say Avi Lewis has only been leader of the Parliamentary fourth party since Sunday night and almost everyone in the federal NDP is […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
The NDP’s Avi Lewis Era, Day 1: Nobody does Red-baiting like Alberta does Red-baiting
The reaction to Avi Lewis’s victory as leader of the federal New Democratic Party was pretty much as predicted here Sunday night, with the pre-written responses by Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi and Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck setting the stage for the day’s journalistic hysteria. “Under new leader Avi Lewis, federal NDP looks more […]