By Rick Strankman, MLA
Drumheller - Stettler
Most of us believe that we have some form of trust with the people we elect as our representatives. In order to establish and maintain that trust, it is up to a representative to be forthright and honest with their constituents about their intentions. Unfortunately, it appears that the current Alberta government doesn’t share that principle.
Alberta’s Finance Minister often mentions how his government has Alberta on “the path to balance.” Yet his government has yet to explain how they are planning to reach this balance he speaks of. He’s clearly indicating that they will somehow do this without budget reductions while still ramping up spending as they have done for over three years.
Meanwhile, the government disingenuously argues that the Opposition seeks to harm Albertans – a claim severely out of touch with reality.
READ MORE: The tale of tax on everything: MLA Strankman
It doesn’t require an economics degree to understand in order to balance Alberta’s budget, the spending growth we’ve seen in recent years will need to be restrained. But does anyone believe the government has the self-control to stop their spending binge? The Alberta government is either misrepresenting their intentions, or they have another mysterious way to generate revenue in order to balance our finances, which they aren’t willing to share with us.
With Alberta facing crushing debt that the government is contributing to in record amounts, something has to give. With Alberta government ministers offering up little more than hollow rhetoric intended to distract Albertans, taxpayers are seeing their personal finances falling deeper into the red.
Now imagine if your household finances were in the kind of shape the province’s finances are today, with spending out-pacing income by a wide margin. Now ask yourself how you would need to respond personally?
At the same time, the government’s anti-business policies are driving away investment and much-needed revenue to pay for essential social programs. The government is only making the problem worse.
There’s obviously something the government isn’t telling us. Perhaps it’s something like what they didn’t tell us prior to the 2015 general election. Their ‘tax on everything’ we all know as the carbon tax. Can Albertans expect even more tax hikes and new taxes if the government gains a second term? With the government’s past record, we should all be very, very concerned.
Alberta voters can only trust that they are putting their mark beside the electoral candidate that most honestly represent their views. They only get those chances every few years. They need to be able to trust that person.
Can Albertans trust our present government?