by Morinville News Staff
The NDP is saying that if the UCP government is going to borrow $25 billion on behalf of Albertans during the COVID-19 pandemic, it must be used to help Albertans.
On Wednesday, April 22, an Order in Council gave the President of Treasury Board and Minister of Finance the ability to borrow up to $25 billion.
The NDP is calling on the UCP to explain what the money is to be used for.
“It’s no surprise that we will need additional fiscal capacity to help Albertans through this pandemic,” said Alberta NDP Finance Critic Shannon Phillips in a media release Thursday. “But so far, the UCP has shortchanged every single support program they launched. The Minister of Finance has underestimated the needs of Albertans and pulled the rug out from under them time and time again. Albertans are struggling and it’s time the UCP actually used some of their fiscal capacity to help people, not just let them down.”
The NDP accuse the UCP of being “incapable of providing basic fiscal support to Albertans,” citing the cancelling of their Emergency Isolation Support program as an example that left thousands of Albertans without promised bridge funding.
Over the past days and weeks, the NDP have proposed funding suggestions to help Alberta residents and businesses through the pandemic, but say they have had no uptake from the government.
“It would be great if Jason Kenney did something more for Albertans instead of just telling them to wait for Justin Trudeau,” Phillips said. “The Premier brags about his relief package, but no one in my riding feels they’re being supported. Instead, they feel left behind.”
The NDP proposed 12 programs or supports that the Government of Alberta could fund with its ORder in Council borrowing limit:
• Extend the eviction ban and provide immediate rental support to Albertans paid directly to landlords to help offset their costs.
• Issue an emergency rent subsidy to small businesses to a maximum of $10,000, and provide a government backstop of up to $7,500 for landlords who agree to defer rent for three months for businesses during the pandemic.
• Immediately reopen emergency support payments to Albertans who are forced to self-isolate, caring for loved ones in self-isolation, caring for children home from school or have lost employment or a significant amount of income due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Provide a much-higher hourly wage top up and hire more nurses to provide emergency care in Alberta long-term care homes and continuing care homes.
• Provide parents who have kids continuing their school work from home with a supplement of $250 for each child to ensure they can purchase supplies and devices necessary for course work.
• Rehire the more than 20,000 educational assistants fired on March 28.
• Procure appropriate amounts of PPE for frontline health workers and essential workers.
• Freeze tuition payments for post-secondary students and backfill all funding to post-secondary institutions to ensure they are financially viable through COVID-19.
• Provide immediate funding to closed child care centres so they can pay their leases and be able to reopen when the COVID-19 pandemic is over.
• Procure hotel rooms for Albertans experiencing homelessness, to ensure they can self-isolate with dignity and avoid the risk of an outbreak in this vulnerable community.
• Immediately provide a top-up to provincial benefit programs, including for the thousands of Albertans on Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) and Income Support programs.
The NDP also snarkily includes the firing of Alberta Health Minister Tyler Shandro, stating, “This costs nothing.”
Who are they borrowing money from? The federal govt?
Murray D’Aoust https://www.qp.alberta.ca/documents/Orders/Orders_in_Council/2020/2020_131.html
Jennifer Christopherson maybe we should just receive some transfer payments.
Murray D’Aoust why not take that up with the guy who wrote the formula? He’s the same clown this province voted to run it.
Jennifer Christopherson that’s too complicated for their base to read, let alone understand.
Dustan McLean could be worse. Could be the ndp.
Murray D’Aoust yeah… Great answer. The province is in far worse shape under the NDP. We were in our way to being diversified and free of debt. That’s your answer? You and the stunned ultracrepidarians of the UCP base are what’s wrong in this province.
Theyve borrowed from the US. $300,000,000 in 100 years bonds. Guess they dont care about debt for the grandchildren after all.
Remember all those UCP supporters crying about debt being passed on to their children? Where are they now? Nothing but silence from the biggest hypocrites in the province.
Of course they’ll say this is because of the virus and to help the petrosexuals in oil and gas (on top of the other billions they’ve been given) – and their supporters won’t care.
What will it take UCP supporters to admit they made a terrible mistake?
Dustan McLean give it a rest, man. I’m sure the whole town is aware you didn’t vote for the UCP. There’s no need to be derogative on every UCP news article. It’s getting tiring.
As far as I know, Alberta has always been an oil and gas Province but I only moved here in 1992. Why does this cause you so much anger? It’s not a well-kept secret.
Maybe you should move to BC. I’m sure you’d be much happier there and your blood pressure should go down.
Because I have every right to call out the hypocrites who bitched and moaned endlessly in this town. Don’t like it? Don’t care.
Dustan McLean Forever in debt to your priceless advice.
Dustan McLean well then instead of throwing a tantrum like a child who had his toy taken away, why don’t you run for the NDP and try to make a real change. Do something instead of constantly bitching about it.
Dustan McLean and vise versa
Karen LM careful he will call you a maggot !
Karen LM
He is a tough guy over the internet!
But lets think this through, have we ever dealt with anything as serious as covid19 since WW2?
Fred William Glaubitz no i dont this so
Cecil Allen you’re the biggest hypocrite out there, boomer.
Dustan McLean rather be a hypocrite than a parisite like you
Dustan McLean I double dare you to speak this way to people face to face!
I would get popcorn and watch! 🙂
Fred William Glaubitz Any day.
As a boomer I can still at 65 hand out a good old knuckle sandwich
Any day for what?
You to run away with your tail between your legs like a female canine??
Like cmon, you dont look much like a tough guy, you look pretty soft actually!
Fred William Glaubitz he has no respect for boomers I doubt if he has any respect for his dad who’s probably a boomer
Fred William Glaubitz Folks….no need to resort to threats. Let’s agree to disagree. And if we can’t, perhaps remaining silent is best. God Bless and stay safe.
Truth sure hurts, eh, boys? You all in a circle jerk right now too? Be sure to be six feet apart… That’s if your Cialis has kicked in.
Cecil Allen I have no respect for those who don’t deserve it. Like you.
Jack St-Onge
I would never threaten the guy..
key words, “get popcorn and watch!”
I am not in oil and gas, but know lots of families suffering.
So if he thinks that’s a joke I challenge him to act tough in front of those with nothing to lose!
Fred William Glaubitz no, I think every Oil and gas worker who voted UCP are getting EXACTLY what they deserve. The rest of us get to suffer because of mass ignorance.
Dustan McLean same here Dustpan
Fred William Glaubitz I agree with you totally at least I have friends and relatives who are NDP but we have respect for each other in one beliefs we don’t insult each other .
Cecil Allen you call me a parasite… My company put a million dollars into the economy in the last five months. What have you done, other than wither in your old age?
Your company 😂😂👍😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂👍😂😂😂
Ask anyone who knows both of us. But of course… That truth will hurt even more.
What,s an albertan to this asshole. UCP,
WHAT3 THE MEANING. OF UCP ANYWAY:::UNITED CASH PROTECTOR
YOUmean ;:ADMIT that they fucked up