CLARE GAUVREAU
Nouvelle Contributor
Whether or not a five per cent pay cut for Alberta’s MLAs and a 10 per cent reduction for the premier is a harbinger of public sector cuts in the fall, time will tell. For now, the UCP government prefers to define it as leading by example.
“Talking to the premier and executive council, it’s leading by example and it’s something we talked about during the campaign,” Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul UCP MLA Dave Hanson expressed. “I hate to use that cliché ‘promise made promise kept’ again, but it’s kind of what we’re trying to stick to, the promises made in the campaign, and a pay reduction was one of them.”
Earlier this month, the all-party Special Standing Committee on Members’ Services unanimously passed the pay cut for elected officials at the provincial level.
“Out of control spending by the previous government put Alberta on track for $100-billion in debt, jeopardizing the future of public services. We were elected with a mandate to be fiscally responsible, and that has to start at the top. Today’s decision is about leadership by example,” Premier Jason Kenney stated in announcing the move.
With this cut, MLA pay now sits at $121,000 a year, the premier earns about $186,000, and cabinet ministers earn about $181,000.
Reductions were also made to MLA travel expenses, including eliminating gas cards and harmonizing the standard mileage rate with that of other public servants.
“We talk fiscal restraint, and you’ve got to walk the walk as well,” Hanson noted.
When asked if the move is a foreboding to public sector cuts, Hanson responded, “That’s not my understanding, no. When we look at the financial state of Alberta right now and we talk to people about having to curb spending or control spending, this is one way to do it and you can’t really ask other people to tighten your belts unless you’re willing to do it yourself.”
With the UCP government celebrating its first 100 days in office early-August, Hanson said his party remains committed to following through on its election promises.
“We had a pretty comprehensive platform and so we’re trying to stick to that. If I do get any negative comments from people, and they’re very few, it’s very easy to point back to the platform and say you know we’re trying to do what we promised we’d do.”
Hanson said the new riding of Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul is proving to be somewhat more manageable than the former Lac La Biche-St. Paul-Two Hills constituency in terms of travelling from one end to the other, and he said he’s seeing signs of optimism since the UCP win in April.
“If you talk to the builders and the auto dealers people are starting to spend a little bit of money and be a little bit freer on the purse strings. We are hoping for a turnaround in the oil and gas industry up here. That’s very important to us, as is agriculture. It’s been a pretty good year as far as rainfall and hopefully these guys can get some hay in and get their crops off as well. It’s more than just the oil and gas industry up in this area, and so we are hoping for a really good year.”
