EDMONTON - Alberta Premier Jason Kenney has announced a blue ribbon panel to make recommendations on how to balance Alberta’s budget without increasing taxes.
“It’s hard to imagine how the government will balance the budget without increasing taxes,” said Joel French, Executive Director of Public Interest Alberta. “It’s like saying to your doctor, ‘I need you to tell me how to improve my health, and I’m willing to listen to any solutions that don’t involve eating right or exercising.’”
Finance Minister Travis Toews issued a letter to the panel’s chair, Janice MacKinnon, outlining the parameters for the advice it provides to the government.
“It is telling that the panel’s mandate includes the UCP election promise of not raising taxes but fails to mention Kenney’s oft-repeated commitment that front line services would not be cut,” added French. “It looks likely that this panel is set up to provide political cover for him to break that promise and cut the public services Albertans rely on and value.”
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