Demanding equality for Alberta
By Letter to the Editor on March 5, 2018.
There are rumblings in Alberta the Federal Equalization Formula which absolutely screws Alberta should be re-negotiated. Currently the federal government (powered by Ontario and Quebec) collect taxes from Alberta and distributes those taxes to so-called “have-not provinces.” The only way Alberta will ever be treated fairly in Confederation is if Alberta collects its own taxes. That has to happen before any discussion on re-negotiating equalization which would have a positive outcome for Alberta. Sound far fetched? Quebec cut the feds out, collects its own taxes and therefore has full control as to where those taxes go. I guarantee you those taxes are only spent in Quebec. Quebec has its own provincial police force, universal child care, paternity paid leave for fathers and the lowest university tuition in the country, to name a few of the benefits that Albertans can only dream of. Why? Because of the equalization arrangement, Alberta is forced to pay $16 billion each year so that certain favoured provinces can enjoy a lifestyle paid for by Albertans. Even though Alberta is actually broke and $50 billion or so in debt. I only hope the current generation of Albertans will have more backbone than my generation. They must insist on Alberta no longer being treated as a colony to Central Canada. Whatever it takes! Whatever the cost! John MacLaren Medicine Hat 8-7
Gee John what planet have you been living on Alberta is broke because gullible Albertans allowed the Klein,Stelmach, and Redford governments to help their rich friends screw the people out of their oil wealth. There was nothing smart about slashing Lougheed’s royalty plan from 35% of oil revenues down to a pathetic 3% and hand out huge tax breaks while they were doing it. It’s why so many true conservatives finally voted in the NDP to stop it. We are told by the Partkland Institute, from the U of A, that we lost $250 Billion and the oil men certainly agree, add in about $100 Billion more in tax breaks and it’s why we are broke and Alaska and Norway aren’t.
And don’t forget the Alberta government doesn’t pay one penny to Ottawa or any other province in equalization payments, like these Reformers want you to believe it all comes out the federal taxes that all citizens of Canada pay into and don’t forget Quebec has a 25% provincial tax, sales tax of 7.5% and maybe you had better read “Payroll Taxes: Quebec Disadvantage”.
So don’t whine about poor old Alberta let’s help the NDP solve the problems by fixing up what the Reformers broke and get us back on the path that Peter Lougheed had put us on of collecting proper royalties and taxes, cutting costs to Albertans, and building the Heritage Trust Fund for our children. Lawyers, accountants, bankers, oilmen and former MLAs will tell you we should never have been put into this mess in the first place. ,