Carbon tax to be cut and business taxes to be lowered when Legislature sits

by Morinville News Staff

The United Conservative Party are planning what they call “an ambitious legislative line-up” to start the spring sitting of the Legislative Assembly, a session they are referring to as the Spring of Renewal.

The first of four bills, if passed, would repeal the carbon tax, implement the UCP’s Job Creation Tax Cut, cut red tape and “open Alberta for business,” the party says.

“Albertans gave us a mandate to get Alberta back on track when they supported our economic plan with the largest number of votes ever cast for a political party in our province. We are honouring their confidence and our commitments,” said Premier Jason Kenney in a media release Tuesday.

Government House Leader Jason Nixon added that there had been considerable interest from businesses and investors already responding to the UCP’s proposed Job Creation Tax Cut.

“We are excited to get to work on this legislative agenda and to start making life better for the people of this province,” Nixon said.

Part of the spring session could see the UCP government repealing decisions made by the NDP, including lowering the minimum wage for students and moving back to an hour-for-hour compensation for banked overtime.

The government’s other bills include the Open for Business Act, which would enact a lower $13 an hour minimum wage for youth under the age of 17. The bill also proposes to roll back two changes made under the NDP by restoring a secret ballot for all union certification votes, and bringing back a straight hour-to- hour exchange for banked overtime hours.

UCP MLAs were sworn in Tuesday morning and will select a speaker Tuesday afternoon. The first sitting of the Legislature will take place Wednesday, May 22 from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. after the lieutenant-governor reads the speech from the throne.