Alberta premier Rachel Notley and her NDP caucus met in Banff earlier this week to continue working on their first full provincial budget to be delivered this fall.
NDP MLAs, including Banff-Cochrane MLA Cam Westhead, and cabinet ministers began arriving in Banff on Tuesday (Sept. 8) in advance of an all-day caucus meeting Wednesday (Sept. 9) at The Banff Centre.
“It’s a regular caucus meeting, going through government business,” said Cheryl Oats, a spokesperson for the premier’s office. It’s targeted at MLAs to discuss the plan for fall and the budget and jobs and the economy.”
The 53-member caucus contains 49 first-time MLAs. Most cabinet ministers were expected to be in Banff.
The NDP scored a stunning victory in the May provincial election, ending the 44-year reign of the Progressive Conservatives.
They passed an interim supply bill in June, reversing many cuts to health, education, and human services made by the outgoing PC government.
The PCs projected the province would have a $248-million surplus, but the final numbers from the 2014-15 budget show the surplus is just over a billion dollars.
The NDP continues to seek public input for both its 2015 and 2016 budget. Budget submissions will be accepted online until 4:30 p.m. on Sept. 14.
Banff Mayor Karen Sorensen was invited to greet many of the politicians at an evening reception Tuesday, but did not know if she would have the chance to meet Notley because the premier was arriving quite late.
“Other than welcoming them, I will take the opportunity to point out some of the interesting attributes of this municipality and also of the Bow Valley in general,” said Sorensen.
Sorensen has already met with Education Minister David Eggen, who also holds the portfolios of tourism and culture.
Westhead arranged a meeting in late August with the minister to meet Sorensen, Canmore Mayor John Borrowman and ID9 chairman Dave Schebek, along with tourism officials from Bow Valley communities.
“We had the opportunity to speak to some of the interesting challenges around being tourism-based communities,” Sorensen said.
“We were able to educate the minister on the importance of tourism, the type of revenue tourism generates for the province and the fact that we’re a growing industry.”
