Throne Speech or Campaign Speech? Workers and families focus of Alberta Premier Rachael Notley’s opening of the legislature

While many are expecting to hear a call for a provincial election in Alberta – likely in the month of May, Premier Rachael Notley’s Throne Speech today sounded more like an election rally, and call to members to prepare campaign teams in all riding's across the province.

It also highlighted how the Alberta NDP government had been building long-term beds, diversifying the economy, and been constructing new schools.  And those of course are what voters like and want to hear.

Premier Rachael Notley stated, “Our government has kept the promises we made to Albertans over the last four years, fighting for what matters to everyday workers and families – good jobs, pipelines, a more diversified economy and strong schools and hospitals. There is more work to do, and this year’s throne speech lays out the work ahead.”

The 2019 throne speech details how the government:

• built 2,000 new long-term care and dementia-care beds 
• helped diversify the economy by attracting nearly $13 billion in new private-sector refining and upgrading investments 
• works towards the completion of 240 new or modernized schools.

Looking forward, the Premier is committed to defending the things that matter to all Albertans, like affordable child care and public health care, while working to diversify the economy.

That commitment to Alberta families was reinforced by the first bill tabled in the spring session, the Public Health Care Protection Act. The proposed bill would protect Albertans from two-tiered, American-style health care.  If passed, the legislation would prevent queue-jumping and preferential access to insured medical services available to all Albertans.

“Whether you come to a hospital with a fur coat or no coat, you deserve the same, world-class health care as everyone else. It’s a fundamental right of all Albertans”, stated Premier Notley.

The government committed in the throne speech to:

• defend Alberta’s public health care from an American-style system.

• keep building more schools, including a new high school in north Calgary.

• get more value from Alberta’s natural resources and continue to diversify the economy.

• bring forward an important new program to help mothers and families save thousands of dollars a year and rejoin the workforce.

• help more Albertans get the education and training they need to build great lives for themselves and their loved ones.

“With the course set in the throne speech, we are going to keep fighting for everyday workers and families. All the while, we will maintain stable, competent and honest government that has its priorities right”, Alberta’s Premier concluded.

I don’t know about you, however that sounded more like a test-drive to the bullet points of her campaign speech kicking off the next Alberta provincial election.  Between covering what the NDP government of Alberta has done, and plans to do, she's covered pretty much all of the bases

Stay tuned as it’s likely to be called within weeks.