If there was one major takeaway from the first official UCP leadership debate, it was Alberta’s place in confederation remains the most prominent topic of discussion in this race.
And all the candidates seemed to agree: Ottawa needs to stay in its lane.
Most of the candidates made positive statements about a number of issues that we have been promoting at Project Confederation: abolishing equalization, an Alberta pension plan and police force, the importance of Alberta controlling our own natural resources, and more.
The main disagreement, actually, was the best approach to take.
After four years of policy frustrations and a lack of appetite for action among the current administration, there were some on stage ready to crank up the heat, and others that seemed ready to take a step back.
The current Alberta government has certainly talked the talk about standing up to the federal government much better than previous administrations.
Actions speak louder than words, though, and action has been sorely lacking.
It has been more than nine months since Albertans strongly voiced their opinion in favour of abolishing equalization from the constitution.
In the aftermath, the muted response from the federal government speaks volumes — when we called, nobody answered.
It has, therefore, become glaringly obvious the equalization referendum was not enough to convince Ottawa to come to the table and initiate constitutional talks.
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