PC leadership candidate Thomas Lukaszuk did not respond directly to our questions on democracy, but he did send us a statement on his overall outlook on democratic reform in Alberta:
Trust must be earned and I will create new processes that will lead to better results. I will create an independent expenditure officer responsible for reviewing and reporting all expenses coming from the premier’s and ministers’ offices. Albertans will be able to judge expenses themselves, and politicians will need to defend their actions in the full light of day.
I will push government departments to make more information public by default, and publish it in a functional format so data can be sorted and organized.
I will empower our elected PC MLAs to become true partners in developing government policy, and to keep Cabinet Ministers accountable with free and open debate. We can increase Albertans’ confidence in independent officers like the Ethics Commissioner and Auditor General by choosing them in an open, less partisan way. We can get better decisions by relying more on good processes and good people, and less on party discipline.
I will also broaden the mandate for foreign offices and require them to provide clear results so that Albertans know the value they are getting for their tax dollars.
I will legislate a fixed election date and stick to it. In between elections, I will keep the doors open to communication and consultation by requiring government MLAs to hold town hall meetings with their constituents and inviting community members and stakeholders to be part of budget deliberations.
Finally, I will be more accessible. The Premier should be the default spokesperson for his or her office. If elected, I will speak with media every day after Question Period, and you will only rarely see an unelected “spokesperson” speak on my behalf. I will also speak frequently with bloggers, rural and cultural newspapers. Albertans will hear directly from their Premier, regardless of where they go to get their news.
To follow up with Mr. Lukaszuk's campaign on his policy, and to ask him about the specific questions we raised on democracy, get in touch with his campaign using the following contact information:
Thomas Lukaszuk
Website: www.lukaszuk.ca
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: 780-424-0090
Twitter: @LukaszukMLA
