UCP leadership candidate Travis Toews shares in Red Deer his plan to “Strengthen Alberta”

“Governments don’t create wealth. At best, governments redistribute it, and we do that inefficiently. It’s entrepreneurs who see opportunity that government could never see,” he said.

Having worked in the private sector as a Chartered Professional Accountant and owner of a cattle operation with his wife near Grande-Prairie, Toews said he never paid attention to government until the NDP came into power in 2015.

“My best day was the day I didn’t notice government,” he said. “We didn’t want to see government overtly involved in our lives so I wasn’t active in politics.”

Toews shared some of his accomplishments on fiscal sustainability during his time as Minister such as balancing the budget for the first time in over a decade and soon eliminating the $10 million differential in 2022-2023 regarding operating expenses on a per capita basis, bringing it back in line with those of other provinces.

In his plan, he touches upon reforming the equalization formula, expiring in 2024, to ensure fairness among all provinces rather than a formula “stacked against” Alberta. He suggests ensuring Quebec hydro income is treated on a consistent basis as Alberta’s non-renewable resource income and working to remove caps placed on the Fiscal Stabilization program which supports provinces experiencing an unexpected drop in revenues.

With the discussion of sovereignty a hot topic among candidates, Toews focused instead on more specific reforms towards increased provincial power such as the creation of an Alberta Pension Plan, in which the details, he confirmed, are currently still in the works.

When faced with what he says are “targeted attacks” from the federal government on Alberta’s economic sectors of agriculture and energy, Toews said he would pass enabling legislation that would allow their provincial government to implement a levy or tariff on goods or services produced from somewhere else in country, as a pushback tool. For example, if Canada were to put a tax on excess profits in the energy industry, he says Alberta would then implement a 20 per cent levy on all Quebec contractors working on a project in Alberta.

Finally, in favor of a provincial police force, Toews says through his time serving on a crime prevention committee, listening to close friends as police officers, and having experienced multiple robberies at his rural business, he believes there to be too much bureaucracy with the RCMP, hindering their progress to increase safety.

HEALTHCARE

Listing it as his number one priority, he says the healthcare crisis is not one of infrastructure, but of capacity and a lack of workers.

His first order or business, he says, would be to decentralize the “broken” Alberta Health Services (AHS).

“I believe that a highly centralized decision-making structure along with a high degree of risk aversion in everything that they [AHS] consider has disengaged so many of our front-line healthcare professionals,” he said.

He says he would review certification bodies to make credentialing for foreign-trained health care workers easier while also investing funds in post-secondary institutions to increase available seats in medical programs. To reduce long waitlists for surgeries, he says he would temporarily set up reciprocal agreements with other provinces and the US so Albertans can receive their treatment elsewhere if desired, billing directly to Alberta Health for coverage up to the cost of the same procedure if delivered in Alberta.

Toews said responding to the healthcare system’s capacity issues is the best way to avoid a collapse if COVID numbers should rise again, as a lockdown is not an option.

LEADERSHIP STYLE

When questioned about what made him different compared to Premier Kenney, Toews responded that it was time for his unique leadership style, learned during his role as President of the Canadian Cattleman’s’ Association, of ensuring everyone had a seat at the table for their voice to be heard, especially in a period of division.

“Very often, as perhaps the chair of the board or president of that organization, I didn’t have the best idea or solution to the challenge that we faced, and very often the best idea came from an unlikely source around the table,” he said.

Toews has three children and 11 grandchildren.

Leadership candidate Rajan Sawhney was scheduled to present as the final town hall candidate Monday night, however, cancelled unexpectedly due to an event obligation, according to Stephan.

by Alessia Proietti

UCP leadership candidate Travis Toews shares in Red Deer his plan to “Strengthen Alberta”

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