But none of this is the case in Alberta. With her first election as party leader looming, Ms. Redford’s government is spending hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars on campaign-style events.
It’s small potatoes in an oil-rich jurisdiction where revenue and spending are soaring, but opponents say it’s a far cry from the new era of politics Ms. Redford pledged in her ascent to winning the party leadership last fall.
There was $100,000 spent on a recent cabinet tour of the province – after several similar tours last year and a leadership campaign in which Ms. Redford zigzagged the province herself for eight months. Critics say it amounted to a whistle-stop campaign tour.
Then there was a caucus retreat to Jasper, a mountain getaway that opposition members say amounted to a campaign planning session. Taxpayers footed that bill, too, about $70,000.
And then there’s the $360,000 in government money Ms. Redford’s office says will be spent to buy advertisements promoting her budget on the radio. “We’re strengthening our communities,” one ad assures voters, directing them to a budget website. But the budget hasn’t been passed yet, and its spending pledges will form much of the base of the election campaign.
Accompanying the ads have been a steady stream of announcements by cabinet ministers, including some held at public institutions, about the proposed budget’s spending plans.
Critics say it’s a step too far – electioneering that gives the governing PCs a huge head start.
“The Premier promised change, and this is typical. It’s typical of this government, abusing the power of the public purse for partisan gain before an election. The budget has not even passed, and they’re making all these spending announcements,” said Raj Sherman, a former Tory who is now leader of the Official Opposition Liberals, who polls suggest are poised to lose several of their seats.
Ms. Redford’s staff declined comment Monday, but last week in a committee debate she rejected the criticisms of Mr. Sherman, saying “it’s not about advertising; it’s about communicating and dialoguing with Albertans.”
An election is expected in late April, with the writ dropping shortly after the budget is passed. (Ms. Redford once promised a fixed election date, but instead introduced a three-month window she called a “fixed-election season.”) Nonetheless, the campaign has essentially already begun. Ms. Redford has made repeated allusions to it herself, and look no further than the bus for evidence. Paid for by the party, it’s already in motion with her slogan – “Real life leadership” – on its side.
The Canadian Taxpayers’ Federation believes the cabinet tour and caucus retreat, where unelected candidates also were invited (though not paid for by either the party or the government), are abuses of the public purse. “The cabinet tour was clearly pre-election electioneering,” said Scott Hennig, the CTF’s Alberta director. However, budget ads are the norm, he said.
They aren’t the norm in Manitoba, where the government is prevented from running advertisements in the few months leading up to an election. The CTF and the Wildrose Party, which is giving Ms. Redford’s PCs their first bona fide challenge on the right, both want similar legislation in Alberta.
“I think that doing a bunch of pre-election advertising on their budget is also offside with what people would consider to be legitimate spending. They’re clearly trying to blur the lines,” said Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith, who is not among her party’s four MLAs. “I think it’s going to backfire on them. Certainly, we’re going to try and make an issue of it in the campaign.”
Original Article
Source: Globe
Author: Josh WinGrove
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