AB Today – Daily Report May 27, 2020

Quotation of the day

“Well, at least we are seeing some honesty for once.”

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg reacts to Energy Minister stating ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ now is a great time to build pipelines because COVID-19 prevents large gatherings of protestors.

Today in AB

On the schedule The house reconvenes for a summer session today. A debate on the government’s response to COVID-19 is expected to take up the entirety of the sitting day and could run into the evening. It will kick off with remarks from Premier . ​ ​

Summer sessions are becoming less of a rare breed in #abpoli. The house sat for seven weeks last summer after the UCP swept the election.

The government is expected to table three new bills on Thursday (see top story for details).

Premier watch Premier Jason Kenney was due to give a news conference with Labour Minister Jason ​ ​ ​ Copping on Tuesday afternoon about “temporary changes to get Albertans back to work,” but ​ the availability was abruptly cancelled.

Kenney later took to Twitter to share his excitement that was shortlisted as a potential hub city for when the NHL resumes.

“It would be the right choice to host it here in Oil Country. We have the ice, the facility, and the low COVID-19 numbers to support it,” the premier tweeted.

Business (mostly) as usual for summer session Get ready for long nights at the legislature. Government house leader says the ​ ​ house will sit until all the government’s business gets passed.

Nixon set out a summer session that could last through the end of July — with evening sessions expected twice weekly throughout.

That’s in order to pass legislation important to the UCP’s mandate, which includes at least three new bills on top of the four already on the order paper.

While most provincial legislatures remain laser-focused on coronavirus-related legislation, the UCP government is charging ahead with its pre-pandemic plans.

“As we move toward a more normal rhythm in the legislature, we’ll be looking to fulfil more of the promises we made to Albertans when they gave us a mandate to govern,” Nixon said.

Three new bills On Thursday, Energy Minister Sonya Savage will introduce Bill 7, Responsible Energy ​ ​ ​ ​ Development Amendment Act. That bill will overhaul the regulatory approval process for oil and gas infrastructure from the pre-approval stage to reclamation.

It is part of a larger overhaul of the troubled Energy Regulator.

Education Minister Adriana LaGrange will introduce the contentious Bill 15, Choice in ​ ​ ​ ​ Education Act.

While Nixon said he cannot divulge information on the bill before it is tabled, critics say the proposed legisaltion, which was laid out in the UCP’s election platform, would pull resources away from the public school system and towards charter schools.

Justice Minister will introduce Bill 16, Victims of Crime Amendment Act, ​ ​ ​ ​ which will make changes to compensation for victims of crime by expanding the scope of the fund.

NDP ready for battle NDP house leader Heather Sweet told reporters Tuesday the Opposition intends to hold the ​ ​ government accountable, and if that means attending evening sittings, so be it.

While a limited number of NDP MLAs will be sitting in the house at any given time due to physical distancing restrictions, Sweet said the party has a plan to rotate who is in the legislature.

The NDP also intends to bring forward a private member’s bill to protect public sector pensions, per Sweet.

Special committee to tackle Bill 10 changes The government also plans to strike a special committee to review the Public Health Act, which ​ ​ was amended by the UCP’s controversial Bill 10, Public Health (Emergency Powers) ​ ​ ​ Amendment Act, earlier in the pandemic. ​

Nixon argued the emergency bill, which passed on April 2, made few changes to cabinet powers, contending the offending clauses were contained in the original bill — which dates back to the early 1900s.

Bill 10 is being challenged in court by The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, headed ​ ​ ​ up by UCP member John Carpay. The JCCF alleges the bill added powers of seizure of ​ ​ property and blanket authorization to enter a residence without a warrant, mass immunizations and public testing, and the ability to create any new law without consulting the legislative assembly.

Sweet said NDP members on the committee intend to call the premier and some of his cabinet ministers as witnesses.

“Bill 10 was a blatant, grotesque, power grab by the government at the height of a pandemic,” ​ ​ Sweet said.

Alberta passes most non-coronavirus legislation A report from the Samara Centre for Democracy shows that Alberta passed the second highest ​ ​ number of bills during the pandemic and was one of the few legislatures in Canada that tackled non-COVID-19 laws.

Between March 16 and May 15, the Alberta legislature sat for 13 days and passed five emergency bills and five non-pandemic bills, as well as a budget. Only Manitoba had more new laws hit the books, including nine emergency bills and four non-COVID bills (but no budget).

Legislatures in Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Nunavut have not sat since the World Health Organization declared a pandemic on March 11. Saskatchewan and Yukon have not sat since mid-March.

Remaining order paper goodies There are three government bills sitting at second reading stage.

● Bill 1, Critical Infrastructure Defence Act, which increases penalties for disruptive ​ protests at several types of infrastructure deemed essential; ● Bill 2, Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Amendment Act, which loosens liquor laws, ​ including allowing drinking in parks; and ● Bill 4, Fiscal Planning and Transparency (Fixed Budget Period) Amendment Act. ​

NDP MLA ’s Bill 202, Conflicts of Interest (Protecting the Rule of Law) ​ ​ ​ ​ Amendment Act, is scheduled to be heard at the Standing Committee on Private Bills and Private Members’ Public Bills on Thursday.

Today’s events

May 27 at 3:30 p.m. – Edmonton ​ Two UCP committees will meet in the Federal Building. The resource and sustainable development committee will meet in the Mountbatten Room while the jobs and economy committee will meet in the Windsor Room.

Topics of conversation

● There were 22 new positive COVID-19 cases reported Tuesday, bringing the total number of active cases to 714l. There are now 6,048 recovered cases. ○ A total of 139 Albertans have died from the virus with one new death reported yesterday. ○ There are currently 45 people in hospital, five of whom are in the ICU.

● The province’s trial of hydroxychloroquine has been suspended, following a similar move ​ ​ by the World Health Organization over safety concerns with the drug. ○ In April, the UCP pledged $286,000 for the study, which it dubbed the “Alberta Hope” project. ○ Hydroxychloroquine has been touted by U.S. President Donald Trump, leading ​ ​ to a run on the medication, which is used to prevent malaria and treat diseases such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

● The provincewide fire ban, implemented to free up resources to cope with the pandemic, has been eased to a fire advisory thanks to rainfall throughout Alberta.

● Energy Minister Sonya Savage’s comments on COVID-19 being useful to keep ​ ​ anti-pipeline protestors away have caught international attention. ○ Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg tweeted, “Well, at least we are seeing ​ ​ some honesty for once... Unfortunately this [is] how large parts of the world are run.” The BBC also picked up the story. ​ ​ ○ Environment Minister Jason Nixon told reporters on Tuesday that no one should ​ ​ be surprised the Alberta government will stand up for the province’s “clean energy” against anti-pipeline activists. ○ Opposition house leader Heather Sweet said the NDP is pro-pipeline but takes ​ ​ issue with the attack on dissenters.

● city council voted to ban the practice of conversion therapy. ​ ​ ○ “This is about banning the coercive, inhumane practice of forcing you to be someone you are not,” Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi said. ​ ​ ​ ○ While the NDP had struck a working group on conversion therapy, UCP Health Minister dissolved it after last spring’s election. ​ ​ ○ Since then, some Alberta municipalities have passed bylaws explicitly banning the practice, while the federal Liberal government has indicated it will bring forward a new specific criminal charge. ○ “[Monday]’s decision also sends a message to Jason Kenney and the UCP ​ ​ government: Albertans won’t let the repeated failures of this government stop them from doing the right thing,” NDP MLA said in a news ​ ​ release. ○ Status of Women Minister lauded the City of Calgary’s decision. ​ ​ “This is such a significant day for so many Albertans,” Aheer tweeted. “We should ​ ​ all feel safe to love and live freely.” ○ Shandro’s press secretary Steve Buick took a different tack, questioning why ​ ​ ​ ​ news outlets would cover Calgary council’s vote when the practice is already prohibited by human rights law. ○ While conversion therapy is not funded by , it is still practiced in Alberta.

● The UCP’s plan to increase the number of certain surgeries performed in privately operated clinics has been postponed due to the pandemic, CBC reports. ​ ​ ○ The government has extended the intake period for proposals by nearly a year to December 31. That means the first surgeries in privately operated, publicly funded clinics won’t start in the fall as planned. ○ The so-called Alberta Surgical Initiative was recommended as a cost-saving initiative by both the blue ribbon panel on the province’s finances and the Ernst and Young review of Alberta Health Services.

● During a meeting of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, NDP Education critic repeatedly tried to ask about staffing cuts at post-secondary institutions. ​ ○ UCP MLA called multiple points of order on Eggen for not ​ ​ sticking to the agenda, which related to outstanding recommendations from the auditor general in his 2018-19 annual report on the University of Calgary. ○ Eggen called on the UCP government to reverse the 3,538 job cuts across the province’s post-secondary institutions.

● Marlene Poitras, Alberta regional chief for the Assembly of First Nations, told APTN the ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ UCP’s recent repeal of coal mining regulations was made without consultation.

● Two men ticketed under the Public Health Act at a protest on the legislature grounds are ​ ​ fighting the $1,200 fine with representation from the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, the Edmonton Sun reports. ​ ​ ​ ​

● The Canadian Federation of Independent Business, Restaurants Canada, Alberta Chambers of Commerce and the Retail Council of Canada signed a letter to Premier ​ ​ Jason Kenney calling on the province to bring in temporary commercial eviction ​ protection.

News briefs

Government shaves barber training in half

● The UCP announced it is cutting red tape for barbers by halving the required training time. ○ Previously, barbers would have had to undertake two years of training. The new rules will allow certification for shaving, cutting and trimming after just 12 months, 10 weeks in the classroom and 1,450 hours of on-the-job training.

Funding announcements

Agriculture and Forestry

● The new non-profit Results Driven Agriculture Research (RDAR) will receive $37 million ​ ​ annually from the province and is expected to launch in May. ○ The government announced the RDAR interim board at the end of March and expects the funding to begin rolling out in September 2020; the RDAR to be up and running fully in March 2021. ○ The non-profit will allow farmers to help determine agricultural research priorities.