AB Today – Daily Report May 9, 2019 Quotation of the day “I’ve got a young family, I’ve got a life ahead of me that doesn’t involve the colonoscopy of partisan politics and media.” Ex-Freedom Conservative Party leader Derek Fildebrandt announces his successor David ​ ​ ​ White outside of the legislature. ​ Today in AB On the schedule The province’s NDP caucus will be sworn in next Monday, May 13, in the legislative chamber. Official Opposition Leader Rachel Notley is expected to announced her shadow cabinet by the ​ ​ end of the week. The UCP MLA-elects who are not a part of cabinet will be sworn in on the first day of the upcoming session, May 21. The Speaker election will take place on May 21; the government’s throne speech will be delivered on May 22. Premier Watch Premier Jason Kenney released a statement on the 71st anniversary of the creation of the ​ ​ state of Israel, mourning the continued pervasiveness of anti-Semitism and anti-Israeli sentiments across the world. At the Legislature The Elizabeth Fry Society, an organization that advocates for female inmates, held a peaceful demonstration on the legislature’s grounds Wednesday calling for an end to strip searches in prisons. Dueling protests are planned on the legislature grounds today as the anti-abortion “March for Life” faces off against counterprotestors from the “March for Lies” on the 50th anniversary of legalization of abortion in Canada. New ministers coy during inaugural media scrums Alberta’s new cabinet ministers were met by the media on the way into their first meeting in the legislative building Wednesday afternoon. Most of the newly minted ministers claimed to be late for the meeting and breezed past reporters, avoiding questions on their new files. Health Minister Tyler Shandro confirmed the Edmonton-based superlab for diagnostic services ​ ​ has been put on pause, as promised during the election campaign, but said he could not speak to the consequences of the project’s cancellation because he has yet to be fully briefed on the file. Asked about UCP MLA Drew Barnes’ request that funds for a planned supervised consumption ​ ​ site in Medicine Hat be redirected to counselling and detox services, Shandro said the government has no plans to cancel existing safe injection sites, but would not say whether proposed sites could be put on the chopping block. Asked about the package of 150 amendments Independent and Conservative Senators tabled ​ ​ Tuesday night on Bill C-69, the UCP-dubbed “no more pipelines act,” Energy Minister Sonya ​ ​ ​ Savage would only say, “there’s a lot.” ​ Education Minister Adriana LaGrange — whose cabinet appointment has faced scrutiny ​ ​ because of her past pro-life and anti-GSA advocacy — told reporters her priority in the new job is “making sure every one of our students is welcomed and cared for and has a safe environment to learn in and that education is well-supported.” She said there was “more to come” on the UCP’s plan to pause curriculum consultations and dodged questions about her plans for proclaiming the Education Act, which would weaken ​ ​ protections for students who join GSAs. A spokesperson for the United Conservative Party said ministers will be available to answer questions from the media by next week. Today’s events May 9 at 9 a.m. — Edmonton ​ The UCP’s Treasury Board Committee will meet in the cabinet room of the legislature. May 9 at 11 a.m. — Edmonton ​ Premier Jason Kenney and Advanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides will visit the ​ ​ ​ ​ Skills Canada Alberta competition at the Edmonton Expo Centre where skilled trades students will compete in more than 40 events. May 9 at 1 p.m. — Edmonton ​ The UCP’s Legislative Review Committee will meet in the cabinet room of the legislature. Topics of conversation ● Premier Jason Kenney gave a shout-out to a University of Calgary researcher, Mina ​ ​ ​ Zarabian, who developed a way to turn natural gas and carbon dioxide into solid carbon ​ ​ ​ nanofibres, which are often used to replace metals in cars, airplanes and wind turbines. ○ “The solution to challenges like CO2 emissions will be made through technological innovation like this,” Kenney tweeted. ​ ​ ○ A key plank in the UCP’s climate change strategy is implementing a Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) fund, which would require large emitters to pay into a fund to develop “new and cleaner Alberta-based technologies that reduce carbon emissions even further.” ○ Kenney’s belief in technological solutions to climate change stands in contrast to Alberta Greenpeace activist Mike Hudema. He is quoted in the article on ​ ​ Zarabian that Kenney shared, saying that technology alone will not solve climate change. ● Independent and Conservative senators tabled dueling packages of amendments to Bill ​ C-69 — which overhauls the environmental assessment process for large projects — on ​ Tuesday, leaving Senate committee clerks to compare the filings looking for overlap before they are debated in the Red Chamber. ○ Speaking on Rob Breakenridge’s 770 CHQR show in Calgary, Independent ​ ​ Alberta Senator Paula Simons said: “It’s going to be a little bit like two little boys ​ ​ in the playground — whose is bigger, whose is better? I happen to think our package of amendments is extremely strong.” ○ The Senate committee is on a tight timeline to reach an agreement on changes to the controversial bill. In order for Bill C-69 to receive royal assent before the ​ ​ House of Commons rises for summer break in mid-June, the Senate must approve the committee’s amended version of the legislation and pass it at third reading; the amended bill will then be sent back to the House for final approval. ● In a special mayoral address Wednesday, Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson made a plea to ​ ​ ​ ​ Premier Jason Kenney — don’t forget about the capital city. ​ ​ ○ Edmonton remains NDP orange after last month’s election, with only one UCP MLA from within its borders voted into office. Kaycee Madu (Edmonton—South ​ ​ West) is the province’s new Minister of Municipal Affairs. ○ In his State of the City speech, Iveson recalled the 1990s, when the majority of Edmonton was represented by Liberal MLAs, and the city was “gutted” because of then-premier Ralph Klein’s infrastructure spending cuts and public sector ​ ​ layoffs. ○ Iveson called on Kenney to keep up important funding for the city’s infrastructure and transit, post-secondary institutions and “health assets,” like Alberta Health Services’ research resources. News briefs — Non-governmental ​ Freedom Conservative Party elects interim leader, looks ahead to 2023 Freedom Conservative Party founder Derek Fildebrandt handed the leadership reins to David ​ ​ ​ White Wednesday. White was elected interim leader by the FCP’s interim board of directors in a ​ run-off vote; three candidates ran for the job. White said the FCP is focusing on building the party ahead of the 2023 election and “continuing to establish the FCP as a distinctive, new, innovative and alternative option.” Noting this is only the third time in history that Albertans elected a two-party Parliament, White said “providing a true unimpeded voice is essential.” White ran as an FCP candidate in Maskwacis—Wetaskiwin in the April election where he finished fourth with 522 votes, or 2.6 per cent of the popular vote. (He lost to UCP MLA Rick ​ Wilson, who won the seat with 64.1 per cent of the vote.) ​ Provincewide, the FCP received only 9,945 votes of the more than 1.9 million that were cast. The FCP will hold an official leadership convention next year; White would not say whether he will seek the top job, reminding reporters he is also a paramedic and a business-owner. For his part, Fildebrandt said he is stepping back to focus on his young family. His daughter turned two in March in the middle of the campaign period. AB Today is written by Catherine Griwkowsky, reporting from Alberta's legislative press gallery. What did you think of this Daily Report? What else would you like to see here? Email [email protected] and let us know. ​ ​ Copyright © 2019 Queen’s Park Today. It is a violation of copyright to distribute this newsletter without permission. .