Latest news with #AlbertaNDP
CTV News
2 days ago
- Politics
- CTV News
‘They don't know what country they're investing in:' Nenshi says separation talk has soured outside investors away from Alberta
Naheed Nenshi, Alberta NDP leader, speaks with Alberta Primetime host Michael Higgins about the Alberta Next panel town halls and his own party's engagement campaign. This interview has been edited for clarity and length Michael Higgins: Alberta Next town halls, two down, several more to go. What are they serving to accomplish? Naheed Nenshi: What a debacle this is. It's just a sham. It's very clear. The premier is very transparent on what she's trying to do here. She's basically saying she started a fire for separatism to get people all mad. She's going to come back and say, you don't want to separate. We're just going to give you your going to give you your own pension plan and your own police force, and everything will be OK. It's not going to work. It didn't work when Jason Kenney did it in 2019, it's not going to work now. The real problem here is that she started a fire, and now she's desperately trying to call the fire department. She's spending millions of dollars of taxpayer money to give separatists a platform, to get other people angry at the separatists showing up at these things, to get people in the audience yelling at each other. What in the world is this going to accomplish? It doesn't actually give you any sense of how Albertans really feel. They're using very bad push polling, very biased videos, to try and get people to answer questions the way they want to answer them. There's no option to say, 'I don't want an Alberta Pension Plan.' The options are, 'What's the best part about an Alberta Pension Plan?' We know nobody wants an Alberta Pension Plan. We know nobody really cares about getting rid of the RCMP. None of this stuff is actually going to address the real concerns of Albertans. None of it's going to get a pipeline built. In fact, all this talk of separation has turned into freezing investment in Alberta, just like we saw in Britain, in Quebec, in Scotland and so on. No one wants to invest here because they don't know what country they're investing in. If we want to address the real economic and social concerns of Albertans, let's address them, because getting our own pension plan is not solving any of people's concerns with how to make Alberta better. MH: They are an opportunity though, are they not, to have a say on these contentious issues for Albertans to directly address the premier? She has faced some angry questions, some criticism, and it's not every day Albertans get to speak directly to Danielle Smith. NN: That is true, except if you have a Canadian flag on, they don't let you in. If you look like you don't agree with them, they don't let you in. They don't let the media film these things or ask any questions. So while they're open to everyone to register, what we've seen is that the folks who believe in separatism have very smartly taken up the slots to give a very stacked room and a very biased view of what's going on. You will see that when people speak out against the Alberta Pension Plan, even in a stacked room, they get massive applause. What the premier was saying was really funny, 'A recent poll shows that some people like the Alberta Pension Plan.' The question that was asked in that poll is, 'If you could have an Alberta Pension Plan that costs less and pays more benefits and has no risk, would you be in favour of it?' That's counterfactual. Those things don't actually exist in the real world. MH: Your party is preparing to hit the highway as well this summer with a handful of town hall meetings. Is that meant to be direct competition with Alberta Next? NN: Very much not, because we don't want to just repeat what she's doing that is ineffective. So we're calling it the Better Together campaign, Better Together summer, and people can find out more at It's going to look quite different. Yes, there will be some town halls where we invite people to come and give us direct feedback but we'll do it in a way that's authentic, where we actually get people talking to one another, where they have the ability to provide real feedback, not just sound bites in 10 seconds or 20 seconds. We're also doing a bunch of other things. Yesterday, for example, I was in Red Deer at the kickoff of the Westerner days. We're talking to regular people at festivals, at community events. My caucus and volunteers are going across the province door knocking. So you're going to see people on your doorstep, at your dog park, in your local community, having real, authentic conversations about what it is that's on Albertans' minds, and what are the things that we really need to focus on? We're hearing number of things already. People are furious about the separatism thing. They're saying this is a distraction from the real issues. People are worried about the cost of living, they're worried about jobs. They're worried about health care and education. They're worried about crime, and none of these things are truly being addressed by the Alberta Next panels that the premier is doing. MH: Is there a role for your party to play this summer in helping advance Thomas Lukaszuk's efforts to spawn an anti-separation referendum question? NN: There are many folks who are out there being pro-Canada, which is great because the vast majority of Albertans are pro-Canada. Our theme, Better Together, it has a few different meanings. Albertans are better when we stand together instead of fighting with their neighbours. It also means that Alberta is better with Canada. I am very unabashedly pro-Canadian and will continue to be pro-Canadian. Quite frankly, I prefer to have no referendum because I think that leads to uncertainty in people's minds. It leads to neighbours fighting with one another and it leads to a real freezing of foreign investment. That said, the premier has put her cards down. She very clearly wants there to be a referendum, though she pretends she's just an innocent bystander. She changed the laws to make it easier to have a referendum. People are going to try different strategies here. I'm just here to talk about the importance of being Canadian. MH: You've been sworn in as an MLA, no more sitting on the legislature sidelines. Does that mean you crank it up a gear for the summer? How does that change your approach to leadership of the New Democrats? NN: We're pretty cranked up already but certainly it'll be helpful to be in the legislature. When the legislature resumes in the fall it'll mean a lot of changes that are probably pretty boring for our viewers today, but it's a bunch of under the hood stuff that I can do now that I was unable to do before. For example, before I wasn't really supposed to do press conferences within the legislature because I wasn't a sworn member. So things like that will become easier but our priorities are not changing. We're really still focused on the things that Albertans tell us they need. A good economy, decent cost of living, great public services and paying for that and being good with money. Just today we had a bunch of reports from the auditor general showing yet again that this so-called conservative government is anything but conservative when it comes to spending taxpayer money. This will be a real chance for us to be able to talk more about these things that matter, including, the ongoing corrupt care scandal. The province has pushed off their investigation. They're still the subject of an RCMP investigation and an auditor general investigation despite their best efforts to stymie those. We're going to see a lot of that come up in the next little while too, to see if there really is as deep corruption within the UCP government as the allegations would make clear.
Hamilton Spectator
3 days ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Unions dominated Alberta political donations in past decade
Between 2015 and 2024, Albertans, corporations and unions made 97,275 donations totalling $90.9 million to provincial political parties, candidates and third-party advertisers. Here's a breakdown of the biggest spenders and beneficiaries. Edmonton and Calgary led the province in donations, contributing 37 per cent and 30 per cent of the total dollar amount, respectively. Though corporations and unions were prohibited from making contributions directly to parties or candidates midway through 2015, they still outspent most individual donors through their funding of third-party advertisers and accounted for 18 of the top 20 largest donors of the last decade. For the top five donors, nearly all of the funds were transferred from unions and professional associations to their own registered political entities. The single largest donor of the last decade was the Health Sciences Association of Alberta (HSAA), which gave over $6 million. The majority of the HSAA's cash, 92 per cent, was gifted from the union to its registered third-party advertiser. All of the Alberta Medical Association's (AMA) $1.8 million in donations went to the AMA third-party. Top 10 political donors in Alberta overall Milner, a prominent figure in Alberta's energy sector, died in 2021 , but still holds the top spot for individual donors in the last decade, giving more than twice that of the second highest contributor, Tourmaline Oil Corp. CEO Mike Rose . The top 10 individual donors were split evenly between Edmonton and Calgary. Edmonton AAFund - $63,808; Alberta Advantage Fund - $75,000; Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta - $34,000; Shaping Alberta's Future - $25,000; United Conservative Party - $8,600; Edmonton-Calder PC Association - $1,000. Alberta NDP Alberta NDP Alberta NDP Alberta NDP Calgary AAFund - $50,000; Alberta Advantage Fund - $50,000 Alberta Liberal Party Alberta Liberal Party Wildrose Party - $45,200; Pro-Life Alberta Political Association - $850; UCP - $1,000 Alberta Advantage Fund - $30,000; UCP - $12,243 Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
CTV News
6 days ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Nenshi calls for provincial unity during NDP summer initiative announcement
Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi announced the 'Better Together Summer' initiative on July 14, 2025. (Courtesy: Alberta NDP/YouTube) The Alberta NDP has launched a new summer initiative to speak to Albertans on their home turf to keep unity within the province. Alberta New Democrat leader Naheed Nenshi took to the podium Monday morning to announce the 'Better Together Summer' plan, a province-wide campaign to speak to Albertans about separatist notions. • Download our app to get Edmonton alerts on your device 'Alberta's New Democrats are hitting the road. We are going to be visiting communities across the province (and) knocking on your doors … and we'll be talking about what Albertans really need,' Nenshi told media on Monday. 'Every single place we go this summer we will give Albertans the tools and the space to stand up for Canada, to show that we're not interested in being torn apart – we're interested in coming together,' Nenshi said. Nenshi said the NDP will be attending festivals, community events, parades and hosting town halls throughout the province, with a focus on 'mid-size and smaller communities.' The announcement comes on the same day that Nenshi and Gurteg Singh Brar were officially sworn in as MLAs for the Edmonton-Strathcona and Edmonton-Ellerslie ridings, respectively. The campaign comes after the UCP government lowered the votes needed to initialize a province-wide referendum to separate from Canada. According to the Better Together Summer website, the campaign is making stops in Lethbridge, Red Deer, Edmonton, Calgary and Airdrie between Aug. 18 and Sept. 11 as of publication. More dates will be confirmed and posted when available.
CTV News
24-06-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Alberta not interested in separation: NDP
Calgary Watch Byelection victories in two ridings, plus a strong showing in a third suggests Albertans don't want separation, Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi says.
National Post
24-06-2025
- Politics
- National Post
Naheed Nenshi returns to Alberta's legislature, NDP wins two of three byelections
Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi has won a seat in the legislature after a year of sitting on the sidelines. Article content He held Edmonton-Strathcona for the New Democrats in one of three provincial byelections Monday night, replacing former premier Rachel Notley in the party stronghold. Article content 'It means I get a parking spot at the legislature. But in reality, I think I've been doing this job for a whole year, and I'm just really grateful for the people of Edmonton-Strathcona to put us up on the next step,' he told reporters in Edmonton Monday night. Article content 'It was a three-step process: win the leadership, get a seat in the house, and now we win the general election,' he said. Article content 'I look forward to constructive debate and, above all, working to advance Alberta's interests: growing our economy, building critical infrastructure, and securing a stronger future for all Albertans,' she wrote on X. Article content Nenshi will face off with the premier in the legislature's question period when the house reconvenes in the fall. Article content 'It will be a little fun for me to be able to stand toe-to-toe with the premier,' said Nenshi. Article content Article content His NDP also declared victory in Edmonton-Ellerslie, where the party's candidate, Gurtej Singh Brar, came in ahead of United Conservative Party candidate Naresh Bhardwaj by over 1,000 votes. Article content Thank you, Edmonton-Ellerslie, for putting your trust in me. I'm grateful to everyone who welcomed me, shared their stories, and supported our campaign. Today, SE Edmonton sent a strong message to Danielle Smith and the UCP. I look forward to being your voice in the Legislature. — Gurtej Singh Brar (@gsinghbrar_yeg) June 24, 2025
