The Alberta government is forecasting a $12.3-billion surplus for 2022-23, according to its mid year fiscal update. The province will also save $13.3 billion because of debt repayment.
The surplus is $1 billion shy of the first quarter fiscal update estimate due to softening oil prices and demand.
But high oil and gas prices contributed to a total revenue of $76.9 billion, or $1 billion higher than the first quarter fiscal update and $14.3 billion higher than the budget estimate.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she promised to balance the budget so Albertans aren’t on the hook for rising debt while showing compassion to Albertans in need.
“We remain focused on doing everything we can to make life more affordable for every Albertan, and to strengthen the economy through jobs and diversification to provide opportunities, prosperity and freedom to all Albertans and families,” she said in a statement.
Finance Minister Travis Toews said the government’s disciplined fiscal approach combined with a focus on investment attraction, economic growth and improved commodity prices has resulted in material surpluses.
“This is good news for Albertans, as it allows for a timely response to the affordability crisis many of our families are facing,” he said in a statement.
“In the face of a potential global recession, Albertans can rest assured our province is in the best position possible as a result of our focus on responsible fiscal management over the last three years.”
Taxpayer-supported debt is forecast to be $79.8 billion on March 31, which includes $13.3 billion in savings following significant debt repayment. The government also said it will commit $10.8 billion over the next three years to savings and debt reduction.
The update forecast $19.4 billion bitumen royalties this year, $6.3 billion of corporate income tax revenues, and $13.3 billion from personal income taxes.
Indexing personal income taxes and the government’s pause in collecting fuel tax have offset some of the increase in revenue. Former Alberta premier Jason Kenney first stopped the fuel tax in April, but it was partially reinstated in October once oil prices relaxed.
The province’s expenses are forecast at $64.6 billion, $1.9 higher than the first quarter fiscal update and $2.5 billion higher than estimated at budget.
Earlier this month, Ontario revealed it expects a budget deficit of $12.9 billion for the 2022-2023 fiscal year, $7 billion less than it forecast in April’s budget.
In a broadcast to the province on Tuesday night, Smith announced a $2.4 billion package for struggling families. That includes $600 for families and seniors every six months, another six months of fuel tax relief, and re-indexed social benefits among a host of other announcements.
The premier said her latest move was just the first step, and there is much more to do.
“I will ensure every decision our government makes from now until this crisis is over balances affordability for Albertans with the need for continued balanced budgets and fiscal responsibility,” she said.
On Day 30 of the Emergencies Act hearings, disclosed documents revealed that at least one bank executive tried to caution Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland against using the country’s banking system as a “political weapon.”
Meanwhile, during her testimony Freeland described the Freedom Convoy protesters as people who were trying to change policy at “gunpoint” and that she refused to negotiate with people who hold democracy “hostage.”
Commission lawyers asked Freeland to explain comments she made to an unknown person in a publicly disclosed transcript.
“Can you explain that comment? ‘We will never support negotiating with those who hold our democracy hostage’,” Commission lawyers asked Freeland.
“I think it’s pretty self-explanatory,” Freeland said. “I don’t think it’s healthy for any democracy for policy to be made at gunpoint, if you will,” Freeland told the Commission.
Chrystia Freeland also told the Commission that she felt Canada was a “powder keg.”
“I felt that Canada was sort of a powderkeg, and that you could have a violent, physical altercation at any point,” Freeland said.
“I don’t think it’s healthy for any democracy for policy to be made at gun point.”
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland describes the Freedom Convoy as an “occupation on our democracy” and that she would never negotiate with the protesters.#POECpic.twitter.com/Vk7RJg9qMH
In a redacted readout of conversations that Freeland had with bank CEOs on February 13, the bankers tell Freeland that because crypto currency platforms are unregulated, it is a challenge for the financial systems to do anything to stop the transfer of money into the hands of protesters.
Later in that conversation, the unknown banker tells Freeland that if you label the protesters as “terrorists” it would make the jobs of the banks easier to shut down the transfer of donated funds.
“I am told this is a public safety lead, but if you list them as people subject to sanctions (ie. as if they are terrorists) we could act swiftly,” the banker told Freeland on February 13.
Another banker on the same call cautioned the government about their attempt to use the banks to achieve a political goal.
“I am very concerned about seeing the banking system being used as a political weapon of the government. We can’t politicize the banks,” one banker told Freeland.
“Explain that,” Freeland responded.
“If we are directed to close accounts, that could be seen by critics as the sector being used as an arm of the government.”
The banker then went on to point out to Freeland that the government needs to start talking about post-pandemic economics and that even though nearly 90% of the population was vaccinated, Canada had the toughest restrictions in the OECD. He also told Freeland that the government needs to show a plan for how to remove restrictions.
One person on the call with Freeland actually pushed back against the government weaponizing the banks and asked the government to "show a plan for how to remove restrictions instead." I want to know who this is so I can switch my accounts to their bank. pic.twitter.com/8WJLKBYeNE
In publicly disclosed handwritten notes that Freeland was taking of her conversations, a note under the headline “Dave” shows that Freeland was once again discussing the possibility of using the label of “terrorist” to describe the Freedom Convoy.
The handwritten notes say, “you need to designate the group as terrorists.”
Convoy lawyer Brenden Miller asked Freeland who “Dave” was and Freeland refused to answer however she assured the Commission that she wasn’t talking to David Vigneault, the Director of CSIS, the group whose mandate it is to investigate terrorism organizations.
“Which Dave?” Miller asked Freeland.
“That meeting is not an account of a meeting with David Vigneault because I didn’t have a meeting with the CSIS Director,” Freeland said.
“Which Dave is in those notes? What’s Dave’s last name?” Miller then asks Freeland.
“I need to see my whole note book that you’re referring to. I can tell you for certain that I did not have a meeting with David Vigneault.
Is Tamara Lich a terrorist?
In handwritten notes presented to the commission, Deputy PM Freeland expresses her desire to label the Freedom Convoy as terrorists.
Despite being directed to "Dave," she's adamant this was not a discussion with CSIS director David Vigneault. pic.twitter.com/ZO9m9oiXG4
A text conversation between Stelco CEO Alan Kestenbaum and Freeland indicated that Kestenbaum was urging Freeland to drop the vaccine mandate for truckers.
“I know it sucks politically to reverse course and back down, but does it really pay to carry on a policy in support of a mandate for a vaccine that doesn’t stop the spread of omicron,” Kestenbaum wrote.
“I know this is a massive headache for you but it could be solved by retreating and letting it fade away.”
Text from Alan Kestenbaum, CEO of Stelco, to Deputy PM Freeland
He's telling her to back off of vax mandate because it's unscientific and doesn't even work.
Then he tries to appeal to her political self-preservationist tendencies.
Freeland then described how seeing a young woman get honked at in Ottawa impacted how she viewed the situation on the ground in Ottawa.
“I walked past a parked truck, and there was a young woman there too and the truck honked really loudly. She shouted something not very nice and made an obscene hand gesture and the trunk honked again really loudly. I was really glad that I was there and that the RCMP was there,” Freeland said.
“It was this small young woman and this big truck and a person in it and she was mad. And I just thought there are dozens and dozens of these things happening every day and god forbid that one of them should actually flare into violence and physical harm.”
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland describes feeling that Canada was a “powder keg” and fearing violence. She recalls feeling impacted by seeing a woman get honked at. #POECpic.twitter.com/blf9wZKTLK
Next to testify were three senior staffers from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Brian Clow, John Brodhead, and Chief of Staff Katie Telford.
Telford testified that many people were suggesting names of people who could engage with the protesters including Members of Parliament from different parties. Telford did not name these MPs. Telford said engagement with the protesters never became a real option because they did not know who to speak to about negotiations.
Lawyer Brendan Miller asked about the significant amount of redactions on notes from meetings with Telford and her Office Manager Sarah Jackson. Miller asked why notes were redacted without legal reasons. In response, Telford indicated that she could not recall the meeting Jackson made notes about.
A particular section of the notes were redacted through solicitor-client privilege. Miller asked if a lawyer was present during the conversation that the notes are referring to. Telford did not give a clear answer.
Testifying Thursday evening after the PMO staff was Kenneth Weatherill, the inspector general of policing at the Ontario ministry of the solicitor general.
What happens next?
Hearings resume tomorrow morning at 9:30 am ET.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is scheduled to testify tomorrow as the final witness of the Public Order Emergency Commission.
True North will continue to bring you daily coverage of the ongoing Public Order Emergency Commission.
Stanford health professor and co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration Dr. Jay Bhattacharya has been a vocal critic of lockdown policies, prolonged mandates and heavy-handed public health restrictions. The Great Barrington Declaration set out to show the world that a significant number of medical doctors and scientists did not approve of lockdowns and other heavy handed restrictions.
Dr. Bhattacharya joins The Rupa Subramanya Show to discuss the winners and losers of the pandemic, which countries got it right, which countries got it wrong and the big takeaways people should have after almost nearly 3 years of Covid.
Dr. Bhattacharya and Rupa also discuss the effectiveness of masks, if mandates actually work and how public health policies divided society more than ever.
Conservative MPs say the government is crossing a “red line” with its last-minute amendment to ban semi-automatic rifles and shotguns primarily used by hunters, farmers and sport shooters.
The House of Commons Public Safety Committee met on Thursday to continue its clause-by-clause consideration of Bill C-21, proposed legislation to further restrict access to handguns in Canada.
Committee members spent nearly the entire two-and-a-half hour hearing debating a Liberal amendment which would ban hundreds of additional models of rifles and shotguns, impacting hundreds of thousands of legal gun owners across Canada.
Conservative MP Dane Lloyd said the government crosses a “red line” with the measure. He said that a “social contract” has existed for generations in Canada in which firearms owners abide by regulations without fear the government will take their guns.
“Governments of all political persuasions have seen fit to put forward amendments and legislation to close gaps to try to prevent tragedies from happening,” Lloyd said.
“But whenever those laws were passed, there was always an understanding that there was no intention to target law-abiding firearms owners, hunters, farmers, sport shooters and gun collectors,” he continued.
“And there was always a great deal of deference put into the legislative drafting, into having witnesses come, into creating legislation that ensured that that social contract with firearms owners, with indigenous people with hunters, was preserved and protected.”
WATCH: Conservative MP @DaneLloydMP says the government’s latest amendment to restrict virtually all semi-automatic shotguns and rifles would impact hunters, not criminals, and is meant to divide Canadians for the Liberals’ political success.
Loyd said the government is impugning democracy by removing the ability for the measure to be debated and studied from the start of the legislative process. The Liberals tabled the motion Tuesday after the second reading debate, and the committee’s study on the legislation concluded.
“It has precluded our ability to bring in witnesses, to bring in experts to talk about this issue and debate this issue,” Lloyd said. “It’s just been tabled, dropped as an amendment after we have completed our vigorous study.”
Conservative MP Glenn Motz wondered if the government began discussing the measure while the legislation was being crafted. Witnesses from the Department of Justice and Liberal MP Pam Damoff refused to answer, citing solicitor-client privilege.
Motz also compared C-21 to “lipstick on a pig.”
“It looks like it does something beautiful, but it actually makes no difference on public safety,” he said.
WATCH: Speaking to Justice & Public Safety Department witnesses, Conservative MP @GlenMotz says the government’s Bill C-21 is “like lipstick on a pig.”
“It looks like it does something beautiful, but it actually makes no difference on public safety.” pic.twitter.com/rX4E7Jf0fY
On Oct. 27, police experts told the committee that C-21 does not address the real issue of illegal firearms. Chief of Regina Police Service Evan Bray said restricting lawful handgun ownership will not meaningfully address the real problem, while president of the National Police Federation Brian Sauvé said the proposed legislation “primarily” targets legal firearm owners who have followed government regulations.
Liberal MP Taleeb Noormohamed complained that the Conservatives were holding up the legislative process through a filibuster, meaning prolonging debate to delay a decision. He said they should exercise the democratic process by voting against the motion.
In an apparent response to Lloyd’s concerns about Canada’s social construct, Noormohamed said the country changes, like when Canada allowed women to vote.
“It’s really important for us to understand the importance of evolving and that we learned from the past to make a better future,” he said.
“And this legislation, in my opinion, and this amendment, in my opinion, does that.”
Bloc Québécois MP Rhéal Fortin said his party would vote for the amendment.
On Wednesday, Alberta Justice Minister Tyler Shandro said the federal government is seeking to ban legal firearm ownership altogether, as evidenced by the measure.
“In the coming weeks, Alberta will explore all available options to take action.”
The NHL appears to be more focused on pushing woke ideology than playing the game that people want to watch.
This week, the NHL told the world that “trans women and women, trans men are men and non-binary identity is real,” but It’s not just gender ideology that appears to have taken over the NHL. Last month, the NHL decided that in order to increase diversity, they needed to track the skin colour of their employees and set racial quotas for hiring.
This shouldn’t surprise Canadians. It’s been a years-long process of woke ideology taking over Canada’s past time, which all started when Canadian legend Don Cherry was fired from Hockey Night in Canada for telling people in Canada to wear a poppy.
Tune in to the latest episode of Ratio’d with Harrison Faulkner.
A majority of Quebecers want the province to develop its oil and energy potential, a new poll has found.
According to an Ipsos Poll commissioned by the Montreal Economic Institute (MEI) released on Wednesday, 54% of residents would like to see the province undertake energy developments.
The survey also found that 61% of Quebecers think that it’s the province’s responsibility to help reduce Europe’s reliance on Russian gas for its energy needs.
“Contrary to what the government says, Quebecers want the energy sector to develop,” said MEI economist Olivier Rancourt.
“Quebecers understand that the province can help to replace Russian energy exports to the European Union all while creating quality jobs here at home.”
A total of 1,162 Canadians were surveyed by Ipsos between Nov. 10 and Nov. 13.
60% of Canadians reported that they were also against the federal government further raising the carbon tax during inflation.
“With the past year’s high inflation, it’s easy to understand that families just don’t have the means to pay more,” said Rancourt.
“With increases in rent, groceries, and transportation, it’s to be expected that Canadians want their government to go easy on the tax hikes.”
During a diplomatic visit by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in August, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shut down hopes that Canada would provide Europe with energy given the current crisis in Ukraine.
Trudeau claimed that he didn’t see the “business case” for a LNG pipeline on Canada’s east coast.
“From the government’s standpoint, easing the processes — because of the difficulty that Germany is facing — to make sure that we can move through regulatory hurdles more quickly is something we’re willing to do,” said Trudeau.
“There are a number of potential projects, including one in Saint John, and some others that are on the books for which there has never been a strong business case because of the distance from the gas fields.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and several of his cabinet ministers will appear before the Public Order Emergency Commission this week to justify the government’s use of the Emergencies Act to quash the Freedom Convoy.
Today, Katie Telford and senior PMO officials will appear before the inquiry.
Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem told the House of Commons finance committee on Wednesday that the economy would likely be faring better if the Liberal government had clamped down on Covid-19 pandemic stimulus earlier.
While speaking alongside senior deputy governor Carolyn Rogers, Macklem admitted that the central bank should have tightened interest rates and eased off on stimulus policy.
“If we knew everything a year ago that we knew today, yes I think we should have started tightening interest rates sooner to withdraw the stimulus,” said Macklem.
“(If) there would have been less stimulus in the economy, there would have been less demand, (inflation) would have been less.”
“Policies aimed at mitigating the effects of inflation on citizens really need to be targeted, targeted on the most vulnerable, and temporary, temporary while this is an inflation problem,” he continued.
Macklem also called for a “thorough review” of the bank’s handling of inflation once inflation goes down to a 2% target.
“When we get inflation all back down to 2%, I do think we’ll have to have a thorough review of how all our tools worked through this pandemic,” said Macklem.
“I’m not saying we got everything right. We didn’t get everything right. I do think we got a lot of things right and we have some lessons to learn.”
In September, economists warned that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s hefty spending announcements will worsen the inflation crisis.
“We’re not going to deny that there are households seriously in need of help right now in this inflationary environment. But, from a policy perspective, we all know that sending out money as an inflation-support measure is inherently … inflationary,” said BMO senior economist Robert Kavcic.
On Tuesday, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre blasted the Trudeau government for running “inflationary deficits” while Canadians struggle.
“This government told Canadians that interest rates would stay low for a long time. As a result, one-third of the mortgages currently taken out by Canadians are variable rate. This means that when interest rates rise, Canadians either pay more or the term of their mortgage increases,” said Poilievre in the House of Commons.
“According to the Bank of Canada, this is going to cause financial hardship for many families. The government is driving up interest rates with its inflationary deficits.”
Protesters appeared outside of the Terryberry Library in Hamilton on Thursday to demonstrate against a drag queen story time that had been advertised to “gender variant” 0 to 4-year-olds.
A video posted by Toronto Sun journalist Joe Warmington shows demonstrators facing down supporters of the event as police officers watched on.
Tense scene at Terryberry Library in Hamilton for the Drag Story Time event. Supporters and protesters stand off. Hamilton Police on scene pic.twitter.com/by1v3Q7kf3
As first reported by True North earlier this week, the event was billed as a “family-friendly” drag queen story hour by the Hamilton Public Library.
“Hear family-friendly, culturally diverse stories and songs in celebration of families with 2SLGBTQ+ parent(s) and gender-variant children,” the event descriptor reads.
Videos of the incident show protestors chanting “leave the kids alone” outside of the event.
An advertisement posted by the official Hamilton Public Library Twitter account on Nov. 14 notes an earlier drag storytime held at the Binbrook Branch.
“Drag Storytime includes a fun performance of Rainbow Connection from The Muppets and book readings,” wrote library officials.
In subsequent comments to complaints from residents, the library stated that the storytime aligned with the library’s “strategic plan to be a community hub.”
“Hi, many children are and/or have 2SLGBTQ+ people in their everyday lives. The Drag Storytime program aligns with HPL’s Strategic Plan to be a community hub,” the library tweeted on Nov. 15.
Similar events have been held throughout Canada.
Taxpayer funded drag queen performances were also held at the Pickering Public Library earlier this year.
A number of Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) parents and students are speaking out against a controversial motion by trustee Dr. Nili Kaplan-Myrth that would reimpose a mandatory mask mandate on students.
True North heard from several concerned parents and students in the last 48 hours.
Parent Melanie Lefebvre, who has children attending Longfields-Davidson Heights Secondary School, told True North that she does not support mask mandates. She added that masks have harmed the mental and physical health of her kids.
She wrote “my son who has been diagnosed with Sensory Processing Disorder and Aspergers is exempt, yet he got harassed to put (a mask) on.” She said her son ultimately did not comply.
Lefebvre said the matter led to her choosing to keep her kids home “so they (could) breathe, and they could be shielded from the toxic environment.” The mother of three says her kids will not be complying with a new mask mandate if it is imposed by school board trustees.
Another parent, who asked to remain anonymous, also shared her strong opposition to mandatory masking. Her kids attend Robert Hopkins Public School and Henry Munro Middle School.
“Children need to be able to see the facial expressions and mouth movements of others to learn effectively and to properly develop empathy and other social skills,” wrote the parent.
The parent also said that she believes “the drawbacks far outweigh the benefits” when it comes to masking children, and that given the strong debate and disagreement on the matter “individuals & families should be allowed to make their own decisions on masking. and should never be mandated to wear masks.” She says she has no intention to mask her kids if a mandate is imposed.
True North also heard from a parent with a daughter who had been at John McCrae Secondary school, who said previous mask mandates were problematic. This mother also asked to remain anonymous.
“When the mandate was in place (my daughter) struggled wearing it for the full day.” She also said that the mandates “affected (my daughter’s) overall mental state” and caused her to hate school.
She says her other daughter, who has now graduated, developed terrible acne while the mask mandates were in place, “which really affected her well-being.”
In addition to hearing from several other parents, True North heard from a Grade 11 student at Glebe Collegiate High School who says he and his classmates are against a mask mandate.
“Students don’t want to mask and masking creates an extremely toxic environment,” he said, citing arguments he witnessed between teachers and students over masks when the mandate was in place. He says the latter created an “extremely difficult environment to learn in.” He also claimed that students who did not wear masks were harassed.
The student also told True North that the last three years of harsh government Covid mandates, restrictions and school closures have been tough, describing it as “the darkest period in my life.”
“Lockdowns pretty much ruined my mental health, sitting in front of a screen was causing me major migraines,” he said, noting that he was unable to get any work done. “I couldn’t see any of my friends,” he added.
The student says he and his friends will also not be complying with a new mask mandate.
The debate over mandatory masks in OCDSB schools was reignited after newly elected school trustee Dr. Nili Kaplan-Myrth, known for her controversial social media posts and media appearances, put forward a mask mandate motion – amid what experts call a “tripledemic” of respiratory viruses – the seasonal flu, RSV and Covid-19.
Leadership means walking the walk. We will show you how it is done, at our meeting to #BringBackMasks to take care of students and educators. Here’s the motion. To angry parents: There are worse things than wearing a mask indoors. Speak to parents whose children can’t breathe. pic.twitter.com/ZyxwnGcO3M
Dr. Kaplan-Myrth’s motion calls for a strict medical mask mandate to be imposed on all OCDSB students, educators and staff.
The board held a special meeting on Tuesday to debate and vote on the motion, which was attended by a number of parents opposed to mandatory masking. Disruption, protest as well as debates on amendments led to the trustees running out of time and the meeting being adjourned.
@ocdsb chair @LyraEvansOtt has shut the meeting down and all attendees are being asked to leave. The meeting will resume online only. The meeting ended with parents chanting “Tell the truth” and “SHAME” pic.twitter.com/Nqf0Rlr39n
The special meeting is set to resume Thursday night at 6:00pm. However, parents will not be able to attend in person, with the board citing “the interest of safety.”
The OCDSB is not the only school board where trustees have attempted to reintroduce mask mandates. A motion was recently put before the Durham District School Board (DDSB) that would have asked the local public health unit to require masks in schools. The motion was rejected.
It should be noted that while Dr. Kaplan-Myrth says her mandate would be temporary, she has previously stated that she will continue to wear masks forever.
Masking isn’t a hardship. We *could* as a society agree that we have a civic responsibility to take care of each other. In Australia, as in Canada, the most vulnerable populations are the ones you’re “choosing” to harm by dropping masks. I’ll continue to mask forever, for them.
