Why I am Voting "Yes" to the Equalization Referendum
Plus how Alberta won big on seat redistribution, when Parliament will resume, and the reopening of the Canada-US border
Why I am Voting “Yes” to the Equalization Referendum
On Monday, Albertans will be asked if they support the removal of Section 36(2) of the Constitution Act which briefly outlines the existence of the principle that gives life to the equalization program. Many pundits, professors, and politicians have tried to tell Albertans that this referendum doesn’t matter, that it won’t solve anything, or that it will be ignored. I’m here to say: it matters. It matters a lot, and I will be voting unequivocally “yes”.
First, some myth-busting. Equalization only represents less than a third of the total transfer from Alberta taxpayers to the rest of the country. Second, equalization is not the Government of Alberta cutting a cheque to the federal government or other provincial government. It represents the partial redistribution of federal income taxes from “have” provinces, like Alberta, to other “have not provinces”.
The equalization program has always been a political football that few political leaders have dared to take on. During Stephen Harper’s tenure as Prime Minister of Canada, he undertook significant changes to equalization and transfers programs. Over successive terms, he made health transfers fairer by making them a per capita transfer and changed the equalization formula to cap its growth. Harper enacted the fixed growth rate rule which was designed to only allow the equalization program to grows in proportion to overall GDP growth. This solved the problem of the exploding growth in equalization payments.
Fast forward to 2014. The price of oil collapsed and that combined with anti-energy Liberal policies starting in 2015 sent Alberta into its worst recession in a generation. In 2017, the per capita gap between Alberta and other have not provinces went from $11,000 the decade before to $4,000. This is the convergence of fiscal capacity meaning that Alberta got poorer and closer to the average other provinces in Canada. Alberta’s fiscal capacity was 92% higher than the national average, now it’s only 4% higher. Stephen Harper could not have foreseen this, but now the fixed growth rate rule requires that the equalization program continue to grow even though the fiscal capacities of the provinces have converged in on each other. Because Alberta’s fiscal capacity sits above the average and Canada’s GDP continues to grow, the equalization program grows and so do Alberta taxpayer contributions. More simply put, Alberta is now closer to the average and thus there should be less financial resources redistributed as the gap is far smaller than it was a decade ago.
Since the 1960s, Alberta has contributed over $600 billion to the federal equalization program. It’s clear that any discussion or negotiation on equalization will become contentious, but the program has become unfair and unnecessary, and this must be addressed by the federal government. While payments have climbed sky-high, fiscal capacity has become nearly equal.
The Constitution does not allow Alberta to unilaterally amend the equalization principle section, but an overwhelming referendum results will dramatically raise the profile of the issue and will force the Government of Canada to enter into difficult conversations with provinces. In the 1998 Clarity Act reference case to the supreme court, the court argues that a successful referendum should result in a good faith federal-provincial government negotiation.
A referendum is an opportunity for citizens to raise their voices in a measurable way that governments cannot ignore. Pollsters will poll and pundits will opine, but at the end of the day, a referendum is an end-all, ultimate form of democratic expression. Alberta politicians, like me, have often talked about the unfairness of equalization but this is the first opportunity for Albertans to directly weigh in and raise the profile of this long-standing debate or, should Alberta voters vote nay, to drop this issue entirely from our public discourse.
I invite all Albertans to carefully consider every argument in the equalization referendum. This referendum will have profound consequences for Alberta’s role in Confederation.
I hope you will join me in voting “yes” in the referendum.
If you are still making your decision, please watch the below debate between Dr. Bill Bewick from Fairness Alberta and Professor Trevor Tombe from the University of Calgary.
Alberta Wins Big in Redistribution of Parliamentary Seats
It’s no secret that Albertans are underrepresented in Parliament. Members of Parliament sit in the House of Commons and there are 34 MPs for the Province of Alberta. The way the Constitution is worded makes it difficult to achieve absolute parity in the House of Commons. For example, the riding of Calgary Shepard I am honoured to represent has roughly the same population as the province of Prince Edward Island. The residents of Calgary Shepard get one MP and the residents of Prince Edward Island get four.
Every 10 years, the seats in Parliament are redistributed to create greater parity and ensure that all votes in Canada are weighted towards where the population growth is happening The next redistribution will be done based on the results from the 2021 census and will take effect in 2024. Today, Elections Canada announced that Alberta will receive 3 more seats in the upcoming redistribution. British Columbia will gain one, Ontario will gain one, and Quebec will lose one.
Alberta and British Columbia combined will have more seats than Quebec. The West is gaining an additional 4 seats while Eastern Canada will remain net the same. This is terrific news for Albertans and represents the hard-fought work of the Harper conservatives when they had Parliament adopt the Fair Representation Act of 2012.
Parliament Recalled For November 22
In August, the Liberals called the “most important election since 1945” to quote the Prime Minister. Since then, there has been radio silence from the Prime Minister’s office. Today, the Liberals announced that they will reveal their cabinet on October 26th and that Parliament will not resume until November 22nd.
It’s clear, this election was just a power grab for the Liberals and they’re in no rush to get back to work for Canadians. For them, this election was just an opportunity for the Liberals to stop parliamentary accountability.
Rest assured that Conservatives have already started working for Canadians and will continue to hold Liberals to account.
Canada-US Land Border Will Reopen November 8
After nearly two years, this week the Americans announced that they will reopen their land border to Canadians on November 8. I know that many constituents are anxious to visit family, shop, and travel across the border.
You can read more about the specifics of this announcement below.
Catching Up To Emails and Phone Calls
During the federal election, I was not able to answer any messages, calls, etc. to my parliamentary emails and phone lines. My staff and I have been working diligently to ensure that every constituent receives an answer to their questions and concerns. While we work to respond, I ask for your patience, and I promise every constituent will receive a response.