Premier's Speeches
Speeches
Alberta Urban Municipalities Association Annual Convention
Delivered on Thursday, November 5, 2009
Calgary, Alberta
Check Against Delivery
Thanks, Lloyd (Bertschi) and good morning, ladies and gentlemen.
I'd like to thank you for once again inviting our government to participate in this conference from the ministers' reception yesterday and the dialogue sessions this morning, to this opportunity for me to address you as a group. We're here because we want to keep working with you and keep sharing ideas to move forward together. Your conference theme: "Together. Stronger." says it all. As elected leaders, we are all together in facing similar challenges. And when the recovery comes, governments will be among the last to see their revenues return. It may take a few years. In the meantime, we can't just cross our fingers and wait. We need a plan to weather this recession, and come out - stronger - on the other side. Perhaps you've heard the saying, "If you don't know where you're going, then any road will take you there." Well, I think Albertans know where they want to go. And they are counting on their elected leaders to choose the right road to get them there. Our path may change a bit because of circumstances beyond our control. But this is a detour. Our destination won't change. The four-point economic planThere's no question, our province has been hit hard by the global recession. This is the worst economic downturn we've seen in half a century. It's especially bad in the United States, which is bad for us. Because we're a trading province and they're our largest trading partner. Our government's revenues have taken a big hit, mainly due to low prices for natural gas, which is our biggest source of resource revenue. Our focus is on delivering the services that are important to Albertans, like health care and education and doing this within our means. I said earlier that Albertans know where they want to go. They also know where they don't want to go - which is where we went during the last recession: massive cutbacks and downsizing, a total pull-back on infrastructure, and billions in unsupported debt. We're not going there again. Alberta is in a much stronger position this time around. Since the last recession, our government paid off a 23-billion-dollar debt and saved another 25 billion dollars. And together we've put 19 billion dollars of critical infrastructure in the ground. This gives us options we didn't have last time. Our four-point economic plan calls for trimming spending where we can, just like Alberta families and businesses are doing. But most of the revenue shortfall - three-quarters of it - will be covered by our cash savings, the 17 billion dollars in the Sustainability Fund. We can do this while we keep taxes low. Without leaving an IOU that our children and grandchildren will have to repay. And while we continue to invest in infrastructure, so we'll be ready when growth returns. The goal is to return our province to a surplus position. And start saving again for the future, within three years. So we can protect core services like education and health. Shield low-income Albertans and seniors. And start growing our economy again, to provide stability and prosperity for all Albertans. That's why we're continuing to build during this downturn. With a massive infrastructure program that started long before the recession and which will continue long after the recession is a distant memory. We won't be able to build everything we wanted, as quickly as we wanted to. But we will meet the commitments we've made, when we're able to afford it. Support for municipalities
I know many of you have met recently with the Minister of Municipal Affairs. And I've heard from Ray that those meetings have been very productive. I appreciate you taking the time to sit down with Ray, and let him know what's important to you. I believe the most important advancement in municipal affairs has been the partnership we created through MSI. We recognized that growth pressures were putting stresses on our municipal governments. Stresses that municipal taxes couldn't accommodate. Times have changed. And as I have pointed out, provincial revenues have dropped - while municipal revenues have remained pretty stable. The Municipal Sustainability Initiative is one of the first commitments I made when seeking the leadership of our party. It's a high priority for me, and the government. So we will continue to invest in municipalities… Especially these days… when we're seeing dramatic savings in construction costs. We want to keep Albertans working. We want municipalities to continue to move forward with vital infrastructure projects now while labour is available and costs are lower. In the same spirit of partnership we shared when costs were escalating, we need to share in the benefits of cost savings. One of the amazing trends I saw emerging as global financial markets went into crisis was the desire of Albertans to invest in our own province. That's why I'm bringing back Alberta Capital Bonds. They will allow Albertans to invest directly in our province's future... in your communities. And it will be a way to take advantage of our province's excellent credit rating, and today's low interest rates. I really like the idea that people would know which hospitals, schools and other public projects they're helping to build. And I think Albertans would like that too. Something else I've heard from Ray is that you're finding it difficult to plan your budgets when you don't know what the funding will be. And you need to finalize your budgets before we do. I know what that's like - I've been there. And I think we can do something about it. While the provincial and municipal budget cycles are hard to change, I like the idea of sharing budget information with you as much as we can, as early as we can, to facilitate your planning. I've asked my ministers to see what they can do to allow you to plan for the future of the communities you represent. I want to give you the tools you need to make the necessary plans that will provide stability to you, your ratepayers, and the province as a whole. On a similar note, and a timely one, I also know that as leaders, you need to be kept abreast of key health issues, whether it's changes to the system, or the plan to distribute the H1N1 vaccine. And here, too, we will commit to keeping you as informed as we can. So that you are better able to plan and respond in the interests of those you serve. I know that planning for just your own municipality is challenging enough. So when a group of municipalities comes together to create a regional plan, the challenge is even greater. But let me say, it is essential that we do this if we want to attract international investment, and continue to offer a high quality of life in our communities. So I want to congratulate the municipalities who have worked so hard to develop a long-term direction for development, infrastructure and conservation for our two largest metropolitan areas. Each and every municipality involved has shown true leadership to get these plans to where they are today. Municipal communication, cooperation and collaboration are essential. That is why Ray will be bringing forward legislation later this fall that will enshrine our commitment to regional and sub-regional planning. I understand from Ray and many other ministers, that if we are asking you to work together as municipalities then maybe we need to work together as government departments. I agree. We can. Another project I've asked Ray to work on is to streamlining some of the municipal grant programs. There are 77 municipal grants, spread over 13 departments. That's not fair for you, and it's inefficient for us. I've sat on your side of the table before, and I remember designing programs to meet grant requirements instead of designing grant programs that meet the need. We can do something about this too. We will simplify the process and streamline the number of grants to less than half that amount. Competitiveness review
I come now to the fourth point of our four-point economic plan… Ensuring that Alberta's industries are competitive and continue to attract investment. Because only a strong and growing economy can generate the revenues - and the jobs - we need to help return our fiscal balance and support the core services Albertans rely on. We need to make sure there's a level playing field in the upstream oil and gas industry for explorers and exporters. The Energy Minister, Mel Knight, is working on a competitiveness review of the energy sector. And we've committed to having a report on that by the end of the year. Conclusion
As I've said before, this recession is not a derailment of Alberta's plans for the future. It's a detour. We need to keep our eyes on our destination - the Alberta we all want to build. Like Albertans, our government remains confident in the future and with good reason. We have the energy, food and forestry resources the world wants and needs. What we need to do now is live within our means. And keep our focus on growing Alberta's economy. Municipalities are our government's valued partners in this endeavour. We thank you for working with us. And look forward to working "Together. Stronger." with you on the way forward. Thank you.
