whitecourt- ste. anne · about whitecourt-ste. anne . the electoral division of whitecourt-ste....

Whitecourt-Ste. Anne

Electoral Division Information Profile 2015

Compiled by the Alberta Legislature Library

216 Legislature Building 10800 – 97 Avenue Edmonton, AB T5K 2B6 P: 780.427.2473 E: [email protected]

Table of Contents Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 1

About Whitecourt-Ste. Anne ................................................................................................................ 2

Current Electoral Division Map ............................................................................................................. 3

Alberta First Nations and Métis Communities ...................................................................................... 4

Referent Communities ......................................................................................................................... 5

Sources at the Legislature Library......................................................................................................... 6

Local Histories in the Electoral Division .................................................................................................... 6

Government Surveys ................................................................................................................................. 8

Area Newspapers ...................................................................................................................................... 9

Legislative History of Electoral Division .............................................................................................. 10

Elected Members - History of Representation .................................................................................... 14

Summaries of Members’ Service ........................................................................................................ 17

Barker, George R. .................................................................................................................................... 17

Bourcier, Albert V. ................................................................................................................................... 17

Carlier, Oneil ........................................................................................................................................... 17

Cross, KC, Charles W. .............................................................................................................................. 18

Dowling, Robert W. ................................................................................................................................. 18

Gunn, Peter ............................................................................................................................................. 18

Hayes, William E. ..................................................................................................................................... 18

Horner, Hugh M. ..................................................................................................................................... 19

Jespersen, Ralph A. ................................................................................................................................. 19

Kowalski, Kenneth R. ............................................................................................................................... 19

Lundy, Frederick W. ................................................................................................................................ 19

MacLachlan, George ............................................................................................................................... 20

MacLeod, Donald .................................................................................................................................... 20

McKeen, C. Milton ................................................................................................................................... 20

McKenney, Henry W. .............................................................................................................................. 20

McLaughlin, J. Harold .............................................................................................................................. 20

McPherson, John A. ................................................................................................................................ 20

Mills, John A. ........................................................................................................................................... 21

Montemurro, Angelo M. ......................................................................................................................... 21

Whitecourt-Ste. Anne 2015 | Compiled by the Alberta Legislature Library i

Morrison, Angus J. .................................................................................................................................. 21

Patterson, William .................................................................................................................................. 21

Pattinson, Christopher ............................................................................................................................ 21

Purdy, William F. ..................................................................................................................................... 21

Switzer, William A. .................................................................................................................................. 22

Trynchy, Peter ......................................................................................................................................... 22

Unwin, Joseph H. ..................................................................................................................................... 22

VanderBurg, George ............................................................................................................................... 22

Washburn, Willard M. ............................................................................................................................. 22

Weidenhammer, Conrad ........................................................................................................................ 23

Willmore, Norman A. .............................................................................................................................. 23

Wood, Cornelia L.R.................................................................................................................................. 23

Members Representing Armed Services Personnel ............................................................................ 24

Maiden Speeches ............................................................................................................................... 25

ii Whitecourt-Ste. Anne 2015 | Compiled by the Alberta Legislature Library

Introduction The Legislature Library was established in 1906 to serve as the parliamentary library for

Members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. It is the mandate of the Library to provide nonpartisan, confidential and timely information, news and reference services to Members and their constituency and caucus staff as well as the Legislative Assembly Office.

In the course of its work, the Legislature Library frequently receives requests for information about electoral divisions and the Members that represented them. Questions vary from the straightforward (“In which constituency am I located?”) to the more complicated (“Can you provide a list of all the Members of the Legislative Assembly from 1905 to the present that have represented my constituency?”). Since 1905, there have been substantial changes to the province’s electoral boundaries and the names of the electoral divisions as well as to the number of Members elected to serve in each Legislature.

Over the years, Legislature Library staff have researched and compiled information about past and present Members and electoral divisions that address many of these questions.

This Electoral Division Information Profile was developed for the Members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. The profile provides current and historical data regarding the constituency, its Members, and the electorate. The specific focus of the information presented reflects the geographic area covered by the current electoral division, as defined by the Electoral Divisions Act (S.A. 2010, c. E-4.2).

For more information or to provide feedback on this Electoral Division Information Profile, please contact the Alberta Legislature Library by phone (780.427.2473) or by email ([email protected]).

Key to Alberta Party Affiliations used in this Profile Cons Conservative Ind Independent Lab Labour Lib Liberal ND New Democrat PC Progressive Conservative Prov at L Province at Large SC Social Credit UFA United Farmers of Alberta

Whitecourt-Ste. Anne 2015 | Compiled by the Alberta Legislature Library 1

http://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/staff.htm

mailto:[email protected]

About Whitecourt-Ste. Anne The electoral division of Whitecourt-Ste. Anne was established in 2012 with the coming into

force of the Electoral Divisions Act, S.A. 2010, c. E-4.2. The constituency is 12,069 square kilometres with an estimated population of 37,190.1

Three by-elections have occurred in this geographic area since 1905.

Since 1905, 31 individuals have represented this geographic area. One Member has served in nine Legislatures (Kowalski); one Member has served in eight Legislatures (Trynchy); two Members have served in six Legislatures (Willmore and Wood); one Member has served in five Legislatures (Cross); five Members have served in four Legislatures (Bourcier, Horner, MacLachlan, Purdy, and VanderBurg); three Members have served in three Legislatures (Dowling, McKeen and McKenney); six Members have served in two Legislatures (Gunn, McPherson, Patterson, Pattinson, Switzer, and Washburn); and the remaining 12 served in one Legislature (Barker, Carlier, Hayes, Jespersen, Lundy, MacLeod, McLaughlin, Mills, Montemurro, Morrison, Unwin, and Weidenhammer).

Eight Members have held portfolios in government (Carlier, Cross, Dowling, Horner, Kowalski, Trynchy, Vandenburg, and Willmore).

Prominent Members who served in this geographic area include:

• Kenneth R. Kowalski, Speaker (1997-2012), the fourth longest-serving Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta to date;

• C. Milton McKeen, Deputy Speaker and Chair of Committees (1922-1935).

There is another noteworthy detail about the history of representation of West Yellowhead and the geographic area it covers. Charles W. Cross was elected as a Member for both Edmonton and Edson in 1913 to represent both constituencies throughout the Third Legislature. He is the only Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta to represent two constituencies at one time. Cross also served as Member of Parliament for Athabasca in 1926.

Of interest, members with family relationships to others who also served in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta can be found within this geographic area. Peter Gunn (1909-1916) was followed by son-in-law C. Milton McKeen (1921-1935) as representatives of the constituency of Lac Ste. Anne. There has been a father and son that have represented parts of this geographic area: Doug Horner represented Spruce Grove-Sturgeon-St. Albert (2001-2012) and Spruce Grove-St. Albert (2012-2015) and Hugh Horner represented Lac Ste. Anne (1967-1971) and Barrhead (1971-1979).

1 Alberta. Treasury Board and Finance, Alberta Provincial Electoral Divisions: Whitecourt-Ste. Anne (Edmonton: Government of Alberta, 2014), 3, http://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/egovdocs/2014/altrb/172046.pdf.

2 Whitecourt-Ste. Anne 2015 | Compiled by the Alberta Legislature Library

http://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/egovdocs/2014/altrb/172046.pdf

Current Electoral Division Map [Full size map | 11x17]

Provided courtesy of the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer of Alberta.


http://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/egovdocs/2015/alch/213307_a.pdf

http://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/egovdocs/2015/alch/213307_b.pdf

http://www.elections.ab.ca/resources/maps/

Alberta First Nations and Métis Communities Aboriginal peoples in Canada consist of three distinct groups: the First Nations, the Métis, and

the Inuit. Individual First Nation groups in Alberta may contain one to several reserves, and their territory can be quite localized or in a number of different locations. Reserves belonging to the same First Nation may be located in more than one electoral division.

The Election Act was amended in 1965 (S.A. 1965, c. 23) to include First Nations’ peoples as part of the eligible electorate. First Nations first appear on polling station returns of the 1967 general election.

Using the First Nations Profiles Interactive Map from Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada2 and the Alberta Provincial Electoral Division Profiles from Alberta Treasury Board and Finance,3 the following First Nations communities are located in the Whitecourt-Ste Anne electoral division.

First Nation Reserve Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation Alexis 133 Alexis Whitecourt 232 Enoch Cree Nation #440 Stony Plain 135a

Alberta contains eight Métis Settlements, none of which are within the Whitecourt-Ste. Anne electoral division.

For a general overview of the eight Métis Settlements and the 48 First Nations in Alberta, including information on population, land base, location and community contacts, see the Metis Settlements and First Nations in Alberta: Community Profiles, published by the Ministry of Aboriginal Relations.

2 Canada. Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, Aboriginal Peoples and Communities, “First Nation Profiles Interactive Map,” last modified February 21, 2014, http://fnpim-cippn.aandc-aadnc.gc.ca/index-eng.asp. 3 Alberta. Treasury Board and Finance, Alberta Provincial Electoral Divisions: Whitecourt-Ste. Anne (Edmonton: Government of Alberta, 2014), 16, http://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/egovdocs/2014/altrb/172046.pdf.


http://elibrary.assembly.ab.ca/uhtbin/cgisirsi.exe/x/0/0/57/5/3?searchdata1=135690%7bCKEY%7d&searchfield1=GENERAL%5eSUBJECT%5eGENERAL%5e%5e&user_id=WEBSERVER

http://elibrary.assembly.ab.ca/uhtbin/cgisirsi.exe/x/0/0/57/5/3?searchdata1=135690%7bCKEY%7d&searchfield1=GENERAL%5eSUBJECT%5eGENERAL%5e%5e&user_id=WEBSERVER

http://fnpim-cippn.aandc-aadnc.gc.ca/index-eng.asp

http://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/egovdocs/2014/altrb/172046.pdf

Referent Communities Referent communities are those localities which are used to trace the history of the electoral

division. The communities are representative of north, south, east, west and central boundaries of a particular electoral division over time.

Whitecourt-Ste. Anne has nine referent communities. Using the establishment dates of the community and the date of the community first appearing on a polling station return or an electoral map, these referent communities detail the historical electoral boundary changes affecting the geographic area since 1905. These nine referent communities have been within this same electoral division since 1993.

Referent Community Date Established Year First Appeared on Polling Station Return or Electoral Map

Electoral Division

Birch Cove Date unknown 1979 Barrhead Evansburg 1914 1914 Lac Ste. Anne Lac Ste. Anne 1844 1905 Stony Plain Mayerthorpe 1910 1917 Lac Ste. Anne Nakamun ca. 1911 1926 Pembina Onoway 1904 1917 Lac Ste. Anne Pinedale Date unknown 1930 Edson Sangudo 1912 1917 Lac Ste. Anne Whitecourt 1909 1917 Lac Ste. Anne


Sources at the Legislature Library All call numbers refer to the Legislature Library collection.

Local Histories in the Electoral Division The Legislature Library collects local histories from across the province. These histories provide background from a local perspective, often first-hand, on the organizations, residents, and events that have shaped the region and communities within.

Evansburg Foley Trail: A History of Entwistle, Evansburg, and Surrounding School Districts: Bloomingdale,

Brightwood, Collynie, Gowanbrae Holly Springs, Imrie, Lachan, Magnolia, Matthews Crossing, Moonlake, Park Court, Reno, Victory and East of Magnolia. 2 vols. [Evansburg]: Pembina Lobstick Historical Society, 1984. [Call Number: FC 3695 E6 F69]

Lac Ste. Anne Lac Ste. Anne Historical Society. West of the Fifth, A History of Lac Ste. Anne Municipality. Edmonton:

Institute of Applied Arts Ltd., 1959. [Call Number: FC 3695 L17 L11]

McEachern, A., F. Wiggins, and L. D. Travis. History of Local Government, Lac Ste. Anne Area. Stony Plain:

lithiographed by The Reporter, 1970. [Call Number: FC 3695 L17 M15 1970

Mayerthorpe Kezar, J., A. Miner, and R. Barker. Inkwells and School Bells. Edmonton: Allied Printing & Pub., 1977.

[Call Number: FC 3695 M391 K52] Lysachok, Jeanette Grigg. Three Trails Home: A History of Mayerthorpe and Districts, Alberta, Canada.

N.p.: Inter-Collegiate Press, 1980. [Call Number: FC 3695 M39 T41]

Nakamun Onoway and District Historical Society, and Elizabeth Turnbull. The Pathfinders: A History of Onoway,

Bilby, Brookdale, Glenford, Goldthorpe, Heatherdown, Hillcrest, Nakamun, Rich Valley, Speldhurst, Stettin, and Sturgeon River. Winnipeg: Inter-Collegiate Press, 1978. [Call Number: FC 3695 O6 ON6]

Onoway Onoway and District Historical Society, and Elizabeth Turnbull. The Pathfinders: A History of Onoway,



Turnbull, William Forryan. The Pathfinders: 2010. Onoway, AB: Onoway and District Historical Guild, 2010.

[Call Number: FC 3695 O6 P27 2010] Sangudo Sangudo and District History Society. The Lantern Era: A History of Cherhill, Rochfort Bridge, Sangudo

and Surrounding School Districts. N.p., 1979. [Call Number: FC 3695 S15 SA58]

Whitecourt Olecko, Doreen. Sagitawah Saga: The Story of Whitecourt. [Whitecourt]: Town of Whitecourt, 1976.

[Call Number: FC 3699 W58 OL2]

Whitecourt and District Heritage Society. Whitecourt: A History, 1975-2010. [Whitecourt, AB]: Town of Whitecourt, 2013.

[Call Number: FC 3699 W58 W58 2013] Other Bridging the Years: A History of Eastbank, Windfield, Hattonford and East Mahaska. N.p.: Hattonford

Historical Book Committee, 1982. [Call Number: FC 3695 H28 B76]

Carrot Creek Remembers: A History of Carrot Creek, Sparta and Kiehlbauch Areas. Carrot Creek, AB:

Carrot Creek Historical Society, 1985. [Call Number: FC 3695 C23 C24]

Blue Ridge School. Blue Ridge Book. Vol. 2, No. 1. Blue Ridge [AB], 1976.

[Call Number: FC 3699 B6 B62] Foley Trail: A History of Entwistle, Evansburg, and Surrounding School Districts: Bloomingdale,

Brightwood, Collynie, Gowanbrae Holly Springs, Imrie, Lachan, Magnolia, Matthews Crossing, Moonlake, Park Court, Reno, Victory and East of Magnolia. 2 vols. [Evansburg, AB]: Pembina Lobstick Historical Society, 1984. [Call Number: FC 3695 E6 F69]

Onoway and District Historical Society, and Elizabeth Turnbull. The Pathfinders: A History of Onoway,



Government Surveys Between the years 1949 and 1971, the Government of Alberta produced surveys about Alberta

communities. These surveys provide a snapshot of the area at the time and include environment and land information, details about municipal services, active clubs and associations, and information about industry and business. Evansburg 1959: Survey of Evansburg. [Call Number: CA2 ALID 15 1959S73] Mayerthorpe 1961: Survey of Mayerthorpe. [Call Number: CA2 ALID 15 1961M19] Onoway 1971: Survey of Onoway. [Call Number: CA2 ALPB 1971O55] Sangudo 1961: Survey of Sangudo. [Call Number: CA2 ALID 15 1961S15] Whitecourt 1961: Survey of Whitecourt. [Call Number: CA2 ALID 15 1961W33] 1970: Survey of Whitecourt. [Call Number: CA2 ALPB 1970W33]


Area Newspapers The Legislature Library has a large collection of community newspapers from the past and

present which detail issues and events of local importance. The following area newspapers provide coverage of this electoral division. Current Newspaper Holdings URL Mayerthorpe Freelancer 1982-Present http://www.mayerthorpefreelancer.com/ (Onoway) Community Voice 1995-Present http://www.com-voice.com/ Whitecourt Star 1962-Present http://www.whitecourtstar.com/ Historical Newspaper Holdings Evansburg Grand Trunk Poplar Press 1983-1994 Lac Ste. Anne Chronicle 1936-1939; 1940-1966; 1968; 1974-1977 Mayerthorpe Review 1956-1968 Mayerthorpe Star 1972-1977 Mayerthorpe Times 1934-1935 Onoway Westerner 1949-1953 Whitecourt Echo 1960-1963, 1967-1968 Whitecourt News-Record 1914-1917

In addition, the Legislature Library also subscribes to a number of databases on behalf of the Members that provide access to newspapers, magazines, trade publications, academic journals, reports, and ebooks.

Each weekday morning the Library uses newspaper databases to compile Alberta Daily News (ADN) and the Regional News Service (RNS). Intended to help keep Members informed of the latest news from across the province, these services include articles from Alberta’s newspapers that focus on issues related to the Legislative Assembly as well as Alberta public policy and government. ADN includes select news stories from the Globe and Mail, National Post, the major daily Alberta newspapers and selected community and international newspapers, while RNS is a regionally focused complement.

This constituency is covered by the West Central Alberta edition of RNS. Newspapers currently included are: Barrhead Leader; Eckville Echo; Edson Leader; Edson Weekly Anchor; Fox Creek Times; Grande Cache Mountaineer; Hinton Parklander; Innisfail Province; [Jasper] Fitzhugh; Lacombe Globe; Mayerthorpe Freelancer; Ponoka News; Red Deer Advocate; Red Deer Express; Red Deer Life; Rimbey Review; Rocky Mountain House Mountaineer; Slave Lake Lakeside Leader; Slave Lake Scope; Swan Hills Grizzly Gazette; Sylvan Lake News; Westlock News; [Westlock] Town and Country; and Whitecourt Star.


http://www.mayerthorpefreelancer.com/

http://www.com-voice.com/

http://www.whitecourtstar.com/

Legislative History of Electoral Division Since 1905, the area now covered by the electoral division of Whitecourt-Ste. Anne has

undergone several changes. Each of these changes is legislated by various statutes.

Historically, the current electoral division (or parts of it) was under the names of Barrhead, Edson, Lac Ste. Anne, Pembina, St. Albert, Stony Plain and Whitecourt.

This section identifies the electoral divisions in which the referent communities of Birch Cove, Evansburg, Lac Ste. Anne, Mayerthorpe, Nakamun, Onoway, Pinedale, Sangudo, and Whitecourt have been located over the course of Alberta’s electoral history. In some elections, communities appear on polling station returns for more than one electoral division as indicated in the table below. The table below also cites the relevant statute which establishes the electoral division and its boundaries for each Legislature.

Legislature General Election Year

Statute Establishing Electoral Boundaries

Electoral Division Referent Community

1 1905 S.C. 1905, c. 3 Stony Plain4 Lac Ste. Anne St. Albert5 Northern portion of

electoral division 2 1909 S.A. 1909, c. 2 Lac Ste. Anne6 Lac Ste. Anne

Pembina Northern portion of the electoral division

Stony Plain Southern portion of electoral division

3 1913 S.A. 1913, c. 2 Lac Ste. Anne Lac Ste. Anne Stony Plain Southern portion of

electoral division Edson Western portion of

electoral division 4 1917 S.A. 1913, c. 2 Lac Ste. Anne Evansburg Lac Ste. Anne Mayerthorpe Onoway Sangudo Whitecourt Stony Plain Southern portion of

electoral division Edson Western portion of

electoral division

4 Variant spelling: ‘Stonyplain’ and ‘Stoney Plain’ (S.C. 1905, c. 3; Consolidated Ordinances of the North-West Territories, 1907, c. 3). 5 Variant spelling: ‘Saint Albert’ (S.C. 1905, c. 3; Consolidated Ordinances of the North-West Territories, 1907, c. 3). 6 Polling station returns for the 1909 election do not exist for the Lac Ste. Anne electoral division as the Member was elected by acclamation.





5 1921 S.A. 1913, c. 2; R.S.A. 1922, c. 3

Stony Plain Southern portion of electoral division

Edson Western portion of electoral division

S.A. 1913, c. 2; Lac Ste. Anne Evansburg R.S.A. 1922, c. 3; Lac Ste. Anne S.A. 1924, c. 357 Mayerthorpe Onoway Sangudo Whitecourt Pembina Northern portion of

electoral division 6 1926 R.S.A. 1922, c. 3 Edson Western portion of

electoral division Stony Plain Southern portion of

electoral division S.A. 1924, c. 35 Lac Ste. Anne Evansburg Lac Ste. Anne Mayerthorpe Onoway Sangudo Whitecourt Pembina Nakamun 7 1930 S.A. 1930, c. 14 Edson Evansburg 8 1935 Pinedale Lac Ste. Anne Mayerthorpe Nakamun Onoway Sangudo Whitecourt Stony Plain Lac Ste. Anne

9 1940 S.A. 1939, c. 94; Edson Evansburg 10 1944 R.S.A. 1942, c. 4 Pinedale 11 1948 Lac Ste. Anne Lac Ste. Anne Mayerthorpe Nakamun Onoway Sangudo Whitecourt

7 Subsequent to the death of Joseph E. State, Member for Clearwater, parts of that constituency were redistributed to the constituencies of Pembina, Peace River and Lac Ste. Anne. Clearwater ceased to exist as of April 12, 1924 (S.A. 1924, c. 35).





12 1952 S.A. 1952, c. 46 Edson Pinedale Stony Plain Evansburg S.A. 1950, c. 36 Lac Ste. Anne Lac Ste. Anne Mayerthorpe Nakamun Onoway Sangudo Whitecourt 13 1955 S.A. 1955, c. 62; Edson Pinedale 14 1959 R.S.A. 1955, c. 174 Lac Ste. Anne Lac Ste. Anne Mayerthorpe Nakamun Onoway Sangudo Whitecourt Stony Plain Evansburg 15 1963 S.A. 1961, c. 43 Edson Pinedale S.A. 1962, c. 39 Lac Ste. Anne Lac Ste. Anne Mayerthorpe Nakamun Onoway Sangudo Whitecourt Stony Plain Evansburg 16 1967 S.A. 1961, c. 43 Edson Pinedale S.A. 1966, c. 47 Lac Ste. Anne Lac Ste. Anne Mayerthorpe Nakamun Onoway Sangudo Whitecourt S.A. 1962, c. 39 Stony Plain Evansburg 17 1971 R.S.A. 1970, c. 204 Barrhead Nakamun 18 1975 Stony Plain Lac Ste. Anne Onoway Whitecourt Evansburg Mayerthorpe Pinedale Sangudo Whitecourt





19 1979 S.A. 1977, c. 28; Barrhead Birch Cove R.S.A. 1980, c. L-10 Nakamun Onoway Stony Plain Lac Ste. Anne Whitecourt Evansburg Mayerthorpe Pinedale Sangudo Whitecourt 20 1982 R.S.A. 1980, c. L-10; Barrhead Birch Cove S.A. 1983, c E-4.05 Lac Ste. Anne Nakamun Onoway Stony Plain Lac Ste. Anne Whitecourt Evansburg Mayerthorpe Pinedale Sangudo Whitecourt 21 1986 S.A. 1985, c. 24 Barrhead Birch Cove 22 1989 Lac Ste. Anne Nakamun Onoway Whitecourt Evansburg Mayerthorpe Pinedale Sangudo Whitecourt 23 1993 S.A. 1993, c. 2 as Whitecourt-Ste. Anne Birch Cove 24 1997 amended by Evansburg 25 2001 S.A. 1993, c. 4; Lac Ste. Anne 26 2004 S.A 1996, c. E-4.06; Mayerthorpe 27 2008 S.A. 2003, c. E-4.1; Nakamun 28 2012 S.A. 2010, c. E-4.28 Onoway 29 2015 Pinedale Sangudo Whitecourt

8 The boundaries of the electoral divisions are described in Sessional Paper 315/2010.


Elected Members - History of Representation The following section outlines Whitecourt-Ste. Anne’s history of representation at each election.

Listed below, by Legislature and election year, are the electoral divisions and their elected Members, who once represented the area contained in the present-day Whitecourt-Ste. Anne electoral division. Legislature (Seats)

Election Year (Date)

Electoral Division

Member Residence Party Affiliation

1 (25) 1905 (Nov 9) St. Albert Henry W. McKenney Edmonton Lib Stony Plain John A. McPherson Spruce Grove Lib 2 (41) 1909 (Mar 22) Lac Ste. Anne Peter Gunn9 Lac Ste. Anne Lib Pembina Henry W. McKenney Edmonton Lib Stony Plain John A. McPherson Spruce Grove Lib 3 (56) 1913 (Apr 17) Edson Charles W. Cross Edmonton Lib Lac Ste. Anne Peter Gunn Lac Ste. Anne Lib Stony Plain Conrad

Weidenhammer Spruce Grove Cons

4 (58)10 1917 (Jun 7) Edson Charles W. Cross Edmonton Lib Lac Ste. Anne George R. Barker Glenevis Cons Stony Plain Frederick W. Lundy Stony Plain Cons 5 (61) 1921 (Jul 18) Edson Charles W. Cross Edmonton Lib Lac Ste. Anne C. Milton McKeen Roydale UFA Stony Plain Willard M. Washburn Stony Plain UFA Pembina George MacLachlan Clyde UFA 6 (60) 1926 (Jun 28) Edson Christopher Pattinson Edmonton Lib Lac Ste. Anne C. Milton McKeen Roydale UFA Pembina George MacLachlan Clyde UFA Stony Plain Willard M. Washburn Stony Plain UFA 7 (63) 1930 (Jun 19) Edson Christopher Pattinson Edmonton Lib Lac Ste. Anne C. Milton McKeen11 Roydale UFA Stony Plain Donald MacLeod Lake Isle UFA 8 (63) 1935 (Aug 22) Edson Joseph H. Unwin Edmonton SC Lac Ste. Anne Albert V. Bourcier Gunn SC Stony Plain William E. Hayes Stony Plain SC 9 (57) 1940 (Mar 21) Edson Angus J. Morrison Calgary Lab Lac Ste. Anne Albert V. Bourcier Gunn SC 10 (60)12 1944 (Aug 8) Edson Norman A. Willmore Edson SC Lac Ste. Anne Albert V. Bourcier Gunn SC

9 Member elected by acclamation. 10 Includes two Members for the Province at Large elected to represent soldiers and nurses overseas (S.A. 1917, c. 12). 11 Member elected by acclamation. 12 Includes three Members for the Province at Large elected to represent the Navy, Army and Air Force (S.A. 1945, c. 3).


Legislature (Seats)


Electoral Division


11 (57) 1948 (Aug 17) Edson Norman A. Willmore Edson SC Lac Ste. Anne Albert V. Bourcier Gunn SC 12 (61) 1952 (Aug 5) Edson Norman A. Willmore Edson SC Lac Ste. Anne Angelo M. Montemurro Mayerthorpe SC Stony Plain Cornelia L.R. Wood Stony Plain SC 13 (61) 1955 (Jun 29) Edson Norman A. Willmore Edson SC Lac Ste. Anne John A. Mills Onoway Lib Stony Plain J. Herold McLaughlin Spruce Grove Lib 14 (63) 1959 (Jun 18) Edson Norman A. Willmore Edson SC Lac Ste. Anne William Patterson Roselea SC Stony Plain Cornelia L.R. Wood Stony Plain SC 15 (63) 1963 (Jun 17) Edson Norman A. Willmore Edson SC Lac Ste. Anne William Patterson Roselea SC Stony Plain Cornelia L.R. Wood Stony Plain SC By-election13 1965 (Mar 29) Edson William A. Switzer Hinton Lib 16 (65) 1967 (May 23) Edson William A. Switzer Hinton Lib Lac Ste. Anne Hugh M. Horner Barrhead PC Stony Plain Ralph A. Jespersen Stony Plain SC By-election14 1969 (Oct 28) Edson Robert W. Dowling Jasper PC 17 (75) 1971 (Aug 30) Barrhead Hugh M. Horner Barrhead PC Stony Plain William F. Purdy Wabamun PC Whitecourt Peter Trynchy Mayerthorpe PC 18 (75) 1975 (Mar 26) Barrhead Hugh M. Horner Barrhead PC Stony Plain William F. Purdy Wabamun PC Whitecourt Peter Trynchy Mayerthorpe PC 19 (79) 1979 (Mar 14) Barrhead Hugh M. Horner Barrhead PC Stony Plain William F. Purdy Wabamun PC Whitecourt Peter Trynchy Mayerthorpe PC By-election15 1979 (Nov 21) Barrhead Kenneth R. Kowalski St. Albert PC 20 (79) 1982 (Nov 2) Barrhead Kenneth R. Kowalski St. Albert PC Stony Plain William F. Purdy Wabamun PC Whitecourt Peter Trynchy Mayerthorpe PC 21 (83) 1986 (May 8) Barrhead Kenneth R. Kowalski St. Albert PC Whitecourt Peter Trynchy Mayerthorpe PC 22 (83) 1989 (Mar 20) Barrhead Kenneth R. Kowalski St. Albert PC Whitecourt Peter Trynchy Mayerthorpe PC 23 (83) 1993 (Jun 15) Whitecourt-

Ste. Anne Peter Trynchy Mayerthorpe PC

13 By-election held subsequent to the death of Willmore. 14 By-election held subsequent to the death of Switzer. 15 By-election held subsequent to the resignation of Horner.


Legislature (Seats)


Electoral Division


24 (83) 1997 (Mar 11) Whitecourt-Ste. Anne

Peter Trynchy Mayerthorpe PC


Peter Trynchy Mayerthorpe PC

26 (83) 2004 (Nov 22) Whitecourt-Ste. Anne

George VanderBurg Whitecourt PC



28 (87) 2012 (Apr 23) Whitecourt-Ste. Anne


29 (87) 2015 (May 5) Whitecourt-Ste. Anne

Oneil Carlier Darwell ND

Subsequent to the death of Joseph E.

State, Member for Clearwater, in 1923, parts of that constituency were redistributed to the constituencies of Peace River, Pembina and Lac Ste. Anne. The electoral division of Clearwater ceased to exist as of April 12, 1924, when S.A. 1924, c. 35 was granted Royal Assent at the end of the Fourth Session, just part way through the Fifth Legislature, which ended in 1926.

Edmonton Journal, January 31, 1924, p. 1.


Summaries of Members’ Service This section provides basic information about each Member that has served the geographic area

covered by the present-day electoral division of Whitecourt-Ste Anne, including Member number, legislatures served, years of service, electoral division, party affiliation and offices. The Member numbers were assigned based on the date and the order that the Member was sworn in upon first election. Offices listed include Executive Council portfolios and Legislative Assembly roles. Additional biographical information for each Member can be found in the Alberta Legislature Library. Contact the Reference Desk for assistance: 780.427.2473 or [email protected].

The following post-nominal is used in this section: King’s Counsel (KC).

Barker, George R. Member #106

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 4 1917-1921 Lac Ste. Anne Cons

Bourcier, Albert V. Member #258

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 8-11 1935-1952 Lac Ste. Anne SC (1935-1950) Ind SC (1950-1952)

Carlier, Oneil Member #836

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 29 2015- Whitecourt-Ste. Anne ND Years Office 2015- Minister of Agriculture and Forestry


mailto:[email protected]

Cross, KC, Charles W. Member #4

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 1 1905-1909 Edmonton City Lib 2-3 1909-1917 Edmonton Lib 3-5 1913-1925* Edson Lib Years Office 1905-1910 Attorney General 1912-1918 Attorney General *Resigned

Dowling, Robert W. Member #441

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 16-18 1969-1979 Edson PC Years Office 1971-1973 Minister Without Portfolio 1973-1975 Minister of Consumer Affairs 1975-1979 Minister of Business Development and Tourism

Gunn, Peter Member #41

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 2-3 1909-1916* Lac Ste. Anne Lib *Resigned

Hayes, William E. Member #245

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 8 1935-1939* Stony Plain SC *Died in Office


Horner, Hugh M. Member #435

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 16 1967-1971 Lac Ste. Anne PC 17-19 1971-1979* Barrhead PC Years Office 1971-1975 Minister of Agriculture 1971-1979 Deputy Premier 1975-1979 Minister of Transportation 1979 Minister of Economic Development *Resigned

Jespersen, Ralph A. Member #420

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 16 1967-1971 Stony Plain SC

Kowalski, Kenneth R. Member #543

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 19-22 1979-1993 Barrhead PC 23-25 1993-2004 Barrhead-Westlock PC 26-27 2004-2012 Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock PC Years Office 1986-1988 Minister of the Environment 1988-1989 Minister of Career Development and Employment 1989-1993 Minister of Public Works, Supply, and Services 1992-1994 Deputy Premier 1993-1994 Minister of Economic Development and Tourism 1997-2012 Speaker

Lundy, Frederick W. Member #105

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 4 1917-1921 Stony Plain Cons


MacLachlan, George Member #151

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 5-7 1921-1935 Pembina UFA 9 1940-1944 Pembina Ind

MacLeod, Donald Member #207

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 7 1930-1935 Stony Plain UFA

McKeen, C. Milton Member #149

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 5-7 1921-1935 Lac Ste. Anne UFA Years Office 1922-1935 Deputy Speaker and Chair of Committees

McKenney, Henry W. Member #15

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 1 1905-1909 St. Albert Lib 2 1909-1913 Pembina Lib 3 1913-1917 Clearwater Lib

McLaughlin, J. Harold Member #370

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 13 1955-1959 Stony Plain Lib

McPherson, John A. Member #20

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 1-2 1906-1913 Stony Plain Lib


Mills, John A. Member #369

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 13 1955-1959 Lac Ste. Anne Lib

Montemurro, Angelo M. Member #345

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 12 1952-1955 Lac Ste. Anne SC

Morrison, Angus J. Member #281

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 9 1940-1944 Edson Lab

Patterson, William Member #384

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 14-15 1959-1967 Lac Ste. Anne SC

Pattinson, Christopher Member #174

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 6-7 1926-1935 Edson Lab

Purdy, William F. Member #463

Legislature Years Electoral Division Party Affiliation 17-20 1971-1986 Stony Plain PC Years Office 1979-1986 Deputy Chair of Committees


Switzer, William A. Member #418

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 15-16 1965-1969* Edson Lib *Died in Office

Trynchy, Peter Member #466

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 17-24 1971-2001 Whitecourt PC Years Office 1979-1986 Minister of Recreation and Parks 1989-1992 Minister Responsible for Occupational Health and Safety, and Workers’

Compensation Board 1992-1994 Minister of Transportation and Utilities

Unwin, Joseph H. Member #272

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 8 1935 Edson SC

VanderBurg, George Member #728

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 25-28 2001-2015 Whitecourt-Ste. Anne PC Years Office 2006 Minister of Government Services 2011-2012 Minister of Seniors 2012-2013 Associate Minister of Seniors

Washburn, Willard M. Member #122

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 5-6 1921-1930 Stony Plain UFA


Weidenhammer, Conrad Member #86

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 3 1913-1917 Stony Plain Cons

Willmore, Norman A. Member #321

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 10-15 1944-1965 Edson SC Years Office 1953-1955 Minister of Industries and Labour 1955-1965 Minister of Lands and Forests

Wood, Cornelia L.R. Member #282

Legislature Years of Service Electoral Division Party Affiliation 9-12 1940-1955 Stony Plain SC 14-15 1960-1967 Stony Plain SC


Members Representing Armed Services Personnel In 1917, legislation was passed to provide for the election of two Members to represent

Albertans serving as soldiers and nurses overseas during the First World War (S.A. 1917, c. 12). The following two individuals were elected to represent the Province at Large.

Legislature Years of Service Name Affiliation 4 1917-1921 MacAdams, Roberta (Price) Prov at L (Soldiers and Nurses Overseas) Pearson, Robert Prov at L (Soldiers and Nurses Overseas)

In addition, for the 1917 general election, Members who had enlisted for overseas service while serving in the Third Legislature were deemed to be nominated and elected for the constituency they represented. Members were nominated and elected to the Fourth Legislature, in accordance with S.A. 1917, c. 38, for the electoral divisions of Alexandra, Didsbury, Hand Hills, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Pembina, Redcliff, Ribstone, Rocky Mountain, Victoria, Wainwright, and Whitford.

In 1944, legislation was passed to provide for the election of three Members to represent Albertans engaged in the armed services outside of Alberta during the Second World War (O.C. 1515/44, O.C. 1581/44, O.C. 1886/44, S.A. 1945, c. 3). The following three individuals were elected to represent the Air Force, Army and Navy.

Legislature Years of Service Name Affiliation 10 1944-1948 Colborne, Frederick C. Prov at L (Air Force) Prowse, J. Harper Prov at L (Army) Ward, Dudley L. Prov at L (Navy)

Robert Pearson, Frederick C. Colborne and J. Harper Prowse were elected in subsequent general elections.


Maiden Speeches A Member’s first speech in the House. By courtesy it is not subject to interruptions, and a Member wishing to make his maiden speech is given precedence over other Members who rise at the same time. He generally craves the indulgence of the House, and it is the custom for the following speaker to congratulate him.

- Norman Wilding and Philip Laundy, eds. An Encyclopaedia of Parliament.

4th ed. London: Cassell, 1972.

The Legislature Library has made every effort to include every maiden speech for this electoral division since the 17th Legislature when the official Hansard was established in Alberta. Maiden speech transcripts are appended in the following order.

Member Electoral Division

Party Affiliation

Legislature Date of Speech

Hansard Page(s)

George VanderBurg Whitecourt-Ste. Anne

PC 25 23 Apr 2001 97-98

Kenneth R. Kowalski Barrhead

PC 19 8 Mar 1982 36-40

William Purdy Stony Plain

PC 17 23 Mar 1972 (16) 59-64

Peter Trynchy Whitecourt

PC 17 3 Mar 1972 (2) 18-22


Maiden Speech Transcripts

April 23, 2001 Alberta Hansard 97

On a lighter note, Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to work with the

Super Six, although I prefer to refer to the third floor of the Annex

as the Three for All.

Mr. Speaker, I have a volunteer story that goes along with

volunteering and goes along with the business of becoming an

elected member. We had a great commitment from a large, large

number of people, of course like all folks that have been through this

have had. One particular story I’d like to repeat to the members

here. We had a gentleman taking care of signs for us. He had a little

difficulty sleeping because we didn’t have signs where other folks

had signs. At 4 o’clock in the morning he wakes up thinking: what’s

he going to do about this? Can’t sleep. He gets up, goes out in his

pickup truck. Driving down highway 43, not the twinned part but

highway 43, he stops and discovers he’s got a really good place to

set up a sign. So he gets out and he’s driving metal stakes in the

frozen ground. Another pickup truck pulls up behind him. Two

gentlemen are in the truck. They roll down the passenger-side

window. A fella says, “Have you got trouble?” “No,” he said.

“What are you doing?” “Well, I’m just putting up some signs,

election signs for my candidate.” “Well, can we give you any help?”

His reply was, “Is either one of you guys a psychiatrist?”

Mr. Speaker, I would like to express my pride to this House in

being chosen as the representative for Grande Prairie-Smoky. It is

my honour to serve as the voice of such a hardworking and

community-driven people. I see a bright future for my region based

on the visions and the commitment of those who live there. We

have a lot to offer the province of Alberta, and we are proud to be

part of the whole community and look forward to giving our best to

achieve the visions and goals of this province.

Thank you.

MR. VANDERBURG: Mr. Speaker, first allow me to extend my

congratulations to all the recently elected members of the 25th

Legislative Assembly of the province of Alberta. We’ve all worked

very hard to become Members of this Legislative Assembly, and

now is our opportunity to demonstrate to Albertans that we can and

will provide the leadership necessary for a positive future.

Myself, I’m following in the footsteps of a man who has a track

record of approximately 30 years in serving his constituency, namely

Peter Trynchy, the former MLA for Whitecourt-Ste. Anne. He has

left some large shoes to fill, and I feel honoured to have the chance

to accept this challenge.

Mr. Speaker, it’s with the utmost pride that I stand today on behalf

of my constituency of Whitecourt-Ste. Anne. This constituency

represents a large geographic area of west-central Alberta and at its

widest point is approximately 80 kilometres wide by 180 kilometres

long. Within the boundaries of this constituency there are some

30,000 citizens who on March 12 declared their confidence in both

myself and the PC government by electing me to represent them as

their Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. This, of

course, was the result of the tireless efforts of my campaign team.

We all worked very hard, first for the nomination selection and then

for the provincial election. Teamwork has put all of us into these

seats, and it is at this time that this same type of teamwork will carry

this government well into the 21st century.

Personally, my election as a Member of the Legislative Assembly

of Alberta is a pinnacle of something learned at my father’s knee.

My parents are both from Holland, and after surviving the horrors of

World War II, they emigrated to Canada and settled in Whitecourt,

Alberta, in the late ’50s. They knew firsthand about having their

freedoms and privileges taken away from them and so raised their

three children not only to respect freedom but to cherish it.

My father became known as Mr. Red Cross for his devotion and

endless work as a volunteer with the Red Cross, whether it was co-

ordinating blood donor clinics, providing disaster assistance,

providing health aids, or fund-raising. This was his way of demon-

strating his tribute to an organization that provided many forms of

relief to the citizens of Holland during the Second World War. His

example is undoubtedly what influenced me to become an active

community volunteer, and I have done so my whole adult life. I

have served as a coach of minor sports, president of the Whitecourt

Chamber of Commerce, town councillor, regional board member for

the Stony Plain-Lac Ste. Anne health unit, and until this election

served as mayor of the town of Whitecourt for the past nine years.

Now is my opportunity to acquaint you with my constituency.

Whitecourt-Ste. Anne is fortunate enough to have two major

highways running basically east and west through the length of it:

highway 16 towards Jasper national park and highway 43 to the

north. Over the years these two highways have been extremely

important in the development of agriculture, forestry, and the

petrochemical industries. These industries and the resulting spin-off

services required by them have created some communities that are

totally dependent on a single industry to drive their economies.

Meanwhile, these same two highways have also generated great

tourism opportunities in this constituency.

Besides living in the best part of Alberta, residents of this area

have long enjoyed outdoor recreation, whether one likes to fish,

hunt, camp, bird-watch, snowmobile, riverboat, cross-country ski,

golf, trail ride, or attend rodeos, and I can go on and on and on. In

recent years Whitecourt-Ste. Anne has been well known for its

outdoor opportunities and now is host to visitors from all around the

world seeking some of our sports and challenges.

In my constituency and throughout the province each industry has

its own unique challenges that continually require this government

to provide leadership and assistance. Investigating and adjusting our

own rules and regulations to fit not only the problems of the day but

also with an eye to the future could hopefully deal with many of

these challenges. For example, the softwood lumber agreement

affects our forest industry, large operation or small. Our agriculture

sector is faced with low commodity prices and consistently increas-

ing input costs. The resource industry, expanding at record rates,

has to deal with environmental pressures, lack of a skilled work-

force, and short time lines. Tourism and industry in my constituency

will both reap the benefits of highway 43 being twinned.

4:30

For many years highway 43 has been known as the busiest

highway in Canada for tonnage, second only to the 401 in Ontario.

Currently it’s known to be the busiest two-lane highway in Alberta,

carrying the largest truck traffic volumes ever experienced. At the

same time, many sections of this highway are famous for high

accident and death rates due to the fact that it is only two lanes and

that much of this highway has little or no shoulders.

Meanwhile, the twinning is well started, but completion needs to

be accomplished as soon as possible. Land acquisitions along the

route have definitely slowed this process down. It’s my hope to

work with the Minister of Transportation to try to achieve a more

streamlined but still cost-effective method to advance this process.

A shorter completion date would also help to accomplish the

north/south trade corridor from Alaska to Mexico. A lot of people

in my constituency call this the Canamex highway.

My constituency is composed of a sprinkling of many small

villages and towns, generally situated on, near, or in between

highways 16 and 43. Some of the more familiar names are Evans-

burg, Wildwood, Niton, Peers, Whitecourt, Blue Ridge, Green

Court, Mayerthorpe, Rochfort Bridge, Sangudo, Cherhill, Glenevis,

hclose

Highlight

98 Alberta Hansard April 23, 2001

Darwell, Rich Valley, Alberta Beach, Gunn, and Onoway. Many of

these communities and some that have fallen by the wayside were

settled near the turn of the 20th century. At that time this area was

all part of the North-West Territories and land was very cheap. This

was part of a great scheme to populate and civilize the wild west.

The sweat and toil of these pioneers resulted in Alberta becoming a

province in 1905. Their descendants also worked diligently, and all

this effort has resulted in Alberta becoming the innovative, vibrant,

and prosperous province that we all enjoy today.

This constituency also enjoys a rich cultural and ethnic diversity

along with unique languages and traditions. Perhaps best known is

the annual Lac Ste. Anne pilgrimage that sees aboriginal and Metis

people come from mainly western and northern Canada every

summer to participate in religious ceremonies. Lac Ste. Anne is a

rather special area. During the summer months the local population

spirals as many summer villages are filled with people who prefer to

leave the city and live near the lake. This results in a flurry of

summer activities for all to enjoy.

Whitecourt-Ste. Anne has a very high senior population, so proper

accommodation and health care are important to all of us. Good

geriatric care becomes very important, but at the same time, seniors

prefer to remain in or near their hometowns. I’m very proud that our

government has recognized the need for new, innovative health

facilities in a town like Evansburg and appreciate the importance of

the new facility that is scheduled to be built there very soon.

Mayerthorpe is home to an alfalfa plant that is one of the major

employers in the community. Like many other alfalfa plants in this

province, they are struggling to keep open in spite of the fact that

utility costs and other input costs are outstripping revenues. The

former Whitecourt-Ste. Anne MLA and the former agriculture

minister worked together to help this industry survive. It is my hope

that I can carry on this cause through the standing policy committee

on agriculture, to which I have been appointed.

Onoway citizens have related to me the fact that they wish to

preserve their school building, which has stood since the early

1900s. Hopefully I can achieve this with some assistance from the

province.

I have municipalities in my constituency that are concerned about

inadequate supplies of safe drinking water. Others are faced with

aged infrastructure that needs new capital. All this puts an ever

increasing pressure on the municipal tax roll. I do have to commend

our government for reducing the education tax burden on the

municipal tax roll by 10 percent this year. It is my hope to convince

all of you that we must continue to reduce this education tax burden

on local property tax rolls.

I do have concerns about inequities in the property tax roll. Under

the present regulations in the School Act municipalities that wish to

blend their school taxes are in contravention of the act. Mr. Speaker,

I’ll use the example of the town of Whitecourt, where two identical

homes, side by side, one owned by a Catholic ratepayer and one

owned by a public-school supporter, would pay a difference of $200

in their school requisition. I’m pleased to hear from the Minister of

Learning that he is well aware of this situation and in many munici-

palities across our province. It is my hope that through the Depart-

ment of Learning, with the support from all of you, we can resolve

this inequity soon.

More generally speaking, I am very aware that many of my

constituents are very concerned about the cost of gasoline, natural

gas, and electricity, and there are ongoing concerns about the costs

and directions of both health care and education.

Mr. Speaker, I have mentioned just a few of the many challenges

that I know our government will help to resolve to make a positive

future for the constituency of Whitecourt-Ste. Anne as well as for

the province of Alberta. I’m excited about working closely with all

of you over the next few years. I’m also looking forward to working

alongside my colleagues on the third floor of the Annex. We Super

Six rookies are all energetic and dedicated and will do our very best

not only to maintain but also to enhance the performance and

direction of this government.

I will end by again thanking my campaign team as well as the

7,579 voters of Whitecourt-Ste. Anne who all worked together to put

me in this seat. I also want to thank my wife, Liz, and our two sons.

They were my champion supporters. To all the constituents of

Whitecourt-Ste. Anne and to all of you in this Assembly, I promise

to work honestly, with integrity, and to the best of my abilities.

Thank you very much.

THE DEPUTY SPEAKER: The hon. Member for Edmonton-

Norwood.

MR. MASYK: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am truly honoured to be

able to speak to this House today responding to the Speech from the

Throne. It is especially an honour this afternoon because this is my

maiden speech. It is the first opportunity to voice concerns on behalf

of the people of my constituency, Edmonton-Norwood. On behalf

of all Albertans let me say right now that I hold this elected position

to be a very special privilege, and in all my actions in the upcoming

months and years I will do my very best to listen, to learn, to

develop, and to implement ideas that enhance the quality of life in

this province.

Let me begin by congratulating all my fellow MLAs on their

successful election and re-election. I have not had the chance to

meet everyone yet, but from those I have met, I have come to see

that we have a strong team that has been sent to Edmonton for this

25th Legislature. I look forward to working with all of you in

achieving effective results over the next few years.

I’d also like to make some very important thank-you’s. First, I’d

like to thank all the people of Edmonton-Norwood for putting their

faith in me. I’m especially grateful because I know that Edmonton-

Norwood faces many unique challenges and needs a particularly

strong voice in the Legislature to bring those concerns forward. I

want it to be known that I regard your vote of confidence very

seriously and will not fail you. I want all residents of Edmonton-

Norwood, including those who may not have supported me during

the election, to know that I am approachable and open to ideas. As

well, I would like to thank the hon. Lieutenant Governor for her

clear and eloquent presentation nearly two weeks ago and the hon.

Premier for setting Alberta forth on such a positive agenda and for

steering Alberta towards an agenda with tremendous vision and

ability over the next few years and in years to come.

Before I address some points from the throne speech directly, I

feel it is important to bring some attention to the unique aspects of

Edmonton-Norwood. Perhaps the most striking characteristic of my

constituency is a visible history. Edmonton-Norwood is not a new

area. It’s been home to some of Edmonton’s most vibrant busi-

nesses, cultural centres, and schools almost as long as Edmonton has

been a city. A tour of the district would enthrall all visitors with the

elaborate architecture of such buildings as Edmonton-Norwood’s

elementary school, Spruce Avenue school. Just over 25 percent of

the buildings in my district predate World War II. It’s truly a

beautiful district to tour both because of these man-made structures

and also because of the many parks that have been put in by city

planners over the decades.

A second noticeable characteristic of Edmonton-Norwood is the

particular ethnic diversity. Edmonton-Norwood is home to many of

Alberta’s earlier immigrant populations and their descendants. By

36 ALBERTA HANSARD March 8, 1982

people, that introduce all kinds of red tape for people in the various communities who are trying to do their own job, look after themselves and be individual, competitive free-enterprisers. This government doesn't understand that, Mr. Speaker. I think they are going to have to look at the role they are playing in the affairs of people, because Albertans are not accepting it.

I would like to make these concluding comments. First, the Speech from the Throne put forward by this govern-ment was not perceptive of the problems I raised. They don't even hear the voices of Albertans, Mr. Speaker, and I believe they don't want to hear them. Secondly, when I wrote my remarks and thought about them, I was going to give some very good advice about the years 1970 and '71, when I saw the same kind of environment in this Legislature. The government thought they were really lis-tening to the people, but they weren't. The people dealt with them accordingly, and rightly so. I think we are at the same threshold again, where the people are going to deal accordingly with a government that has forgotten where they are, who they are, and what their needs are.

Mr. Speaker, this government does have a chance. Programs such as the ones we have introduced in our Speech to the Throne should be taken with some sinceri-ty. This government can admit its mistakes even yet and become a little more humble than they are at the present time — humble not for their own good but for the good of Albertans, because that is who they represent. Their own personal needs are irrelevant in this whole democrat-ic process; it is the needs of Albertans. But that will take a change and a bit of humbling, Mr. Speaker.

There's still time for this government to do something in their budget speech. I hope the hon. Provincial Treas-urer doesn't come in with a bunch of excuses. We hope the minister is able to deal with spending priorities and say what this government really thinks is important and isn't important. How are they going to deal with interest rates? The province can deal with that question and not say it is a federal problem. If I hear that in the budget speech, that is just an insult to Albertans. They can deal with residential and business heating, and health care. This government has a responsibility to lift morale. In the history of any province, we have never had more money to spend on basic social services like hospital care and extended health care for Albertans.

This government has blown it, Mr. Speaker. We pro-crastinated for 11 years. The minister prior to the present one procrastinated for four years in terms of planning and organizing, and got caught up with four bureaucrats who cost us a fortune in this province. We still haven't caught up, nor have we made some proper decisions. It is unfortunate. Mr. Speaker, I call on the government to deal with those problems. It is their responsibility. The people of Alberta elected them to take that responsibility.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to move an amendment, of which I gave notice the other day, to the motion which is on the Order Paper. The amendment reads as follows:

The motion is amended by inserting the following

words after the words "present session":

"but we regret the omission of adequate provision

for the needs of Albertans as outlined in the docu-

ment entitled, 'Speech to the Throne' tabled today in

the Assembly."

SOME HON. MEMBERS: Question.

MR. KOWALSKI: Mr. Speaker, before we move to the question, I want to take the opportunity to make some

comments this afternoon on behalf of all the good people in the constituency of Barrhead. First of all, I would like to extend my congratulations to the Member for Calgary Millican and to the Member for Bonnyville for being involved in the actual debate. I want to make it quite clear at the outset that I am speaking against the amendment put forward by the Member for Little Bow.

MR. SPEAKER: I see some expressions of concern on the faces of some hon. members about the continuation of the debate on the amendment by the hon. Member for Barrhead, but I don't know of any strictures in parlia-mentary usage which would prevent the opening of de-bate on an amendment by the inclusion of some compliments.

MR. KOWALSKI: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I will be geared by your direction and take the liberty, but not the wanton liberty, of just adding a few more comments of congratulations to my colleagues from both Calgary Millican and Bonnyville. I very much appre-ciated the very, very humanistic approach that the Member for Calgary Millican took in moving his speech the other day. I am particularly pleased with some of the basic comments he made on behalf of individual human beings in the province of Alberta.

To the Member for Bonnyville, an area I come from, my home town in fact, I am very pleased he was asked to second the speech. I think that is a great honor to both the people living there and the people he represents, and even to some of those who have long gone from that part of Alberta and who now are trying to find their roots in other parts of the province.

Mr. Speaker, I am speaking against the amendment put forward by the Member for Little Bow. I want to comment on a number of subject areas: the question of property rights in the province of Alberta, a few com-ments with respect to the Heritage Savings Trust Fund, housing, special warrants, the electrical marketing agency Act, agriculture, Alberta municipalities, and Alberta business.

I want to assure you, sir, and all good members of the House, which is everyone in the House, that I do not intend to use phrases such as: don't want to hear the people of Alberta, do not trust, doesn't understand how to be fair to its own people, is not telling the truth to the people, arrogance, callous attitude, no programs in there for the people of Alberta. I certainly will not take the wanton liberty of exercising those phrases this afternoon.

Mr. Speaker, over the last several months, really since the midpoint of December, all hon. members have had an opportunity to visit their constituents, travel about their constituencies, and meet people in all parts of Alberta. We've all had an opportunity to listen, hear the concerns, and be involved in a lot of discussion.

One interesting item a number of my constituents brought to my attention in the latter part of December, the first part of January, and through February, was some degree of misapprehension or perhaps misunder-standing of the whole question of property rights: the resolution of property rights in the new Canada Bill that will soon become law in this country and, in essence, how it relates to the Alberta Bill of Rights. Interestingly enough, in undertaking numerous discussions with my constituents, inevitably and invariably I found they were reading magazines published in the provinces of Sas-katchewan and Manitoba, which in fact looked at proper-ty rights in those two provinces. My constituents were

apitcher

Highlight

March 8, 1982 ALBERTA HANSARD 37

saying: now look, we don't have any property rights. I consistently and continually had to sit down with them, and I then started referring to two documents. One is the new constitutional proposal, that in essence has been cleared through the various provinces in Canada, the House of Commons, and is now awaiting recognition and approval by the British House of Commons prior to its return to Canada.

One particular section in that new constitution to which I specifically had to draw my constituents' atten-tion, was Section 26 in the Charter of Rights, which very, very specifically points out that it provides for the con-tinuation of all existing rights and freedoms that particu-lar individuals in our country have. The second very important document I take and show to my constituents is a Bill passed in this Legislature in 1972. It's known as the Alberta Bill of Rights. I had to take just a little bit of time to read Section 1 of the Alberta Bill of Rights to them, and I would like to read it into the record this afternoon:

It is hereby recognized and declared that in Alber-

ta there exist without discrimination by reason of

race, national origin, colour, religion or sex, the fol-

lowing human rights and fundamental freedoms,

namely:

(a) the right of the individual to liberty, security

of the person and enjoyment of property, and the

right not to be deprived thereof except by due

process of law . . .

Those two documents, Section 26 of the new Charter of Rights in our new, soon to become, made in Canada constitution, and Section 1 of the Alberta Bill of Rights emphatically prove to me without any doubt or reserva-tion at all that the property rights of Albertans have not been lost. In fact, they are protected in a manner and way in which few citizens in perhaps other parts of Canada have their same property rights protected. That really is primarily because their legislatures have still not moved to incorporate the whole property rights question as our Legislature did some 10 years ago, in 1972, when it was included as Section 1 of the new Alberta Bill of Rights. I think my constituents are much more relaxed now about this whole question of property rights and their protec-tion than they were several months ago when there seemed to be quite a public debate on this question through a number of magazines. Not all were published in the province of Alberta, but certainly those magazines gave the unfortunate opportunity of some misapprehen-sion to some of my constituents.

Mr. Speaker, listening and responding to the concerns of my constituents and talking to people in all parts of Alberta gave me an opportunity to point out what this government has really been doing in a number of areas over the last 10 years. We have just gone through the 10th anniversary of this government, a government that I think is well respected in all parts of Alberta, a govern-ment that has taken bold initiatives over the last decade in a number of areas, and a government that has said again that as it enters 1982, it's going to take bold initia-tives in a number of new areas.

Again, a point of reflection. I listened to my constitu-ents and, of course, responded to their concerns. They said: well, have you thought about doing this, and what's the direction you'd like to go in in this regard? We talked about alternatives, because we always do that. Any gov-ernment that purports to be a government of the people, as this government is, is consistently looking for new alternatives, new directions, new approaches.

I had another little document that I took around with me, and I basically looked at very significant expenditure areas: people programs, programs for people. When I looked at the expenditure by selected provincial govern-ment departments over the last 10 years and compared the expenditure levels in 1971 with the expenditure levels of those same departments in 1980, I came across some very fascinating statistics. As an example, on the question of hospitals, in 1971 the total provincial expenditure was $189.8 million. Mr. Speaker, my constituents were very surprised to learn that by the year 1980, expenditure levels in that one department alone, that very important people department, had risen to $822.3 million. In 1971, total provincial expenditure on education was $378.1 mil-lion. In 1980, the figure for our young learning students, the people who will become our leaders 20 and 30 years from now, had risen to $1.421 billion. In 1971, expendi-ture level on agriculture was $25.3 million. In 1980, that expenditure level was $93.7 million — people programs.

A very important infrastructure development in our province over the last 10 years deals with the area of highways and transportation. It's not peculiar to people who live in urban or rural Alberta. It transcends the wants and desires of everybody. We need a fine transpor-tation system to do two things: bring people closer to-gether and bring goods to market. That's what Alberta is all about. Look at the expenditure level in 1971, $93.7 million. In 1980, that expenditure level had risen to $483.9 million.

Mr. Speaker, in every one of those cases — hospitals, education, agriculture, highways and transport — those budgetary expenditure increases from 1971 to 1980 were all in the magnitude and neighborhood of 400 to 500 per cent. I for one, as a member of this Assembly, don't stand up and say that we should be proud, because look at all the money we're spending. We're not spending our money; we're spending, investing, and using money that belongs to the people of Alberta. But the point, the key reality, is that over that decade this government has responded to the needs of the people of Alberta, and has responded very, very well in a number of very important areas. Some can say that a 400 to 500 per cent expendi-ture level increase hardly keeps up with the pace of infla-tion. So, Mr. Speaker, I went a little farther and checked the 1971 consumer price index as a base. It was 99.7. In 1980, it was 210.6. So according to the consumer price index for that decade, the increase was approximately twofold. All the figures I've just finished talking about show a magnitude of expenditure in the neighborhood of four to fivefold for people programs in this province now — not 40 years from now.

Mr. Speaker, I indicated earlier that I also wanted to make some comments on the Heritage Savings Trust Fund, a very, very important aspect to the way of life in Alberta. A lot of my constituents said, what are you really doing for us; isn't it true that you're putting all this money away for the future; what are you doing now? So we sat down and had some chats — some around the table, some on the street corner, some in a car on main street, but they were held. We had some interesting dis-cussions on the Heritage Savings Trust Fund. We talked about what the Heritage Savings Trust Fund is doing for the homeowner, for the person who has to live in a home in the province of Alberta.

It's very interesting, when you take a look at the magnitude of expenditure levels just in the last short period of time, the magnitude of expenditure, develop-ment, expansion, and assistance through such agencies as


the Alberta Housing Corporation and the Alberta Home Mortgage Corporation in the last year, the 1981-82 fiscal year. The expenditure level in that regard will see us provide some 24,000 units of shelter to the people of Alberta — in this province, not in some other part of Canada that somebody's wanton exuberance might sug-gest might take place. That commitment for those 24,000 units really amounts to some $1.7 billion. That's only in the 1981-82 fiscal year. A commitment in years previous to '81-82 really brings our total commitment to housing in the province of Alberta to $3.4 billion.

Mr. Speaker, we all know that the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund, through the various housing pro-grams that are part of it, encompasses a whole variety of different types of programs. We have only to take a look at an excellent booklet, called Provincial Housing Pro-grams in Alberta. It's made current every several months [as] a new program comes out. We take a look at the 24,000 units that are being provided. In the '81-82 fiscal year, 3,425 senior citizen units are being developed, from Etzikom to High Level, Alberta.

Rental units through CHIP, or the core housing incen-tive program — a lot of people don't like acronyms, because they don't quite appreciate what they all stand for. We're living in a world of acronyms. We have MAP, or the modest apartment program; mobile-home parks; municipal non-profit housing; community housing; and transitional housing. We've even got a few little houses we're building for some of our bureaucrats, as the Member for Little Bow referred. Those are bureaucrats living in some areas of the province of Alberta where there really is no opportunity for conventional housing. As a former bureaucrat — and I don't say that too loudly in coffee discussions with some of my colleagues — we found in the department I was once a deputy minister of, that in fact it was to the advantage of the public purse of the province of Alberta to provide government housing. It was much cheaper in the long term, from an adminis-trative point of view, to do that than to provide an assistance factor to the individual to move his own trailer in, and the like.

Mr. Speaker, 9,680 units were provided in the fiscal year 1981. There were various home ownership programs: the Alberta family home purchase program, the farm lending program, the rural and native housing program, the rural home assistance program, the rural mobile-home program, and land assembly and development which was provided to a number of municipalities in this province.

We have programs for renovation and adaptability for various homes under the Alberta pioneer repair program. I don't know of any member of this Assembly who would suggest that that is not one of the most important people programs this government has ever brought forward. Our handicapped housing grants, our emergency repair pro-grams, and our home conversion programs are all there.

We have other incentive programs for municipal gov-ernments. To repeat, the fact of the matter is: over 24,000 units; a commitment of $1.7 billion in one fiscal year alone; and, in the Speech from the Throne, a commit-ment for more in the 1982-83 fiscal year. That's just housing. That's just one part of the various people pro-grams we have.

Let's talk about what we're doing for Alberta farmers. I represent a constituency that is rural, as do a large number of members in this Assembly. Our farmers are independent, proud people.

MRS. CRIPPS: The greatest.

MR. KOWALSKI: As the Member for Drayton Valley has correctly said, they are the greatest you'll find any-where in the agricultural community in the world. Our farmers came to this province. They developed the prov-ince. They are creating; they haven't stopped. They're innovative. They are upset with the current economic situation for their products. But they also understand that if they're in beef in the province of Alberta — and two and a half times the amount of beef produced in this province must go out of it; it's not consumed in this province — they have to meet a market competitive factor that's really set in the North American market, not set totally in the province of Alberta.

Our grain producers understand that they have to sell their products in all parts of the world. They recognize that the transportation system in western Canada and Canada is a prime responsibility of the government of Canada, not a prime responsibility of the province of Alberta, although this government has decided by itself to get involved in the system and do whatever it can to improve the transportation system.

Our farmers also recognize that interest rates in this country are not set in the province of Alberta or in the province of British Columbia, but in a national city in the country of Canada. They don't appreciate the interest rate policy of the federal government, but they're also not confused about the fact that a government sitting in Edmonton can arbitrarily say that henceforth the interest rate in the province of Alberta will be 12 per cent for each and every individual, and that's the way we're going to live. It doesn't happen that way, Mr. Speaker.

My constituents appreciate that. In fact they're very thankful for the total commitment made under the Herit-age Savings Trust Fund to Alberta farmers. They look forward. They make very positive statements about the beginning farmer program, which since April 1980 has made some 2,000 loans amounting to over $3 million. They're also very pleased with the Farming for the Future program, which talks about research. In fact, I think one of our difficulties today is the lack of really top-notch ideas to address, forward, further cultivate, and develop research in agriculture in this province. My colleague from Macleod, who is very active in that particular program, is consistently looking forward to new ideas that can be further expanded and developed.

In southern Alberta, a great part of this province, some $60 million has been devoted to irrigation rehabilitation and expansion. The people who live in the constituency of Barrhead are really part of southern Alberta, because the geographic centre of the province really goes about 30 miles north of the town the constituency is named after. None of my constituents believes we live in southern Alberta, but from a geographic point of view, we're really a part. We're looking forward to when irrigation rehabili-tation and expansion take place between the Paddle and Pembina rivers in the heart of the constituency of Barr-head. I'm sure we'll have total support from some of my good colleagues living in the deep south, the banana belt part of our province.

The grazing reserves development program funded under the Heritage Savings Trust Fund is one we're all very proud of. Mr. Speaker, we have 1,000 very distinc-tive heritage cars hauling Alberta grain and helping out the western grain industry. They're going to be hauling some of that grain to a new terminal this province is investing money in to help its people, its agrologists.

March 8, 1982 A L B E R T A H A N S A R D 39

What about small, business? I've met with a lot of small business men. They're angry with high interest rates; there's absolutely no doubt at all about that. For any small business man to go down to the bank and have to borrow money at 21, 22, 23, 24 per cent — they're furious. But by the same token, not too many of them are suggesting to me that the province of Alberta should make available 12 per cent interest money. They're par-ticularly not suggesting that if it's meant to finance new business, where business may already exist in a particular town. They recognize and understand — from a risk point of view, because along with our people in agricul-ture they are the foremost risk-takers in this province — the difficulties of an international market and a national market as much as they understand the difficulty of only a provincial market, if artificial barriers are maintained within that particular environment.

Mr. Speaker, a lot of questions have been raised by my constituents: why are you saving 30 per cent; what are you doing with the other 70 per cent? I say we're using it today. The 70 per cent that doesn't go into the Heritage Savings Trust Fund goes into the operating budget of the province of Alberta on a year-to-year basis. In essence, it's being used today for some of those programs I talked about before: hospitals, education, transportation — prime expenditure functions.

They said, you've got so much money in the Heritage Savings Trust Fund; how come you're lending all this money to these other provinces in this country of Cana-da; why aren't you spending more? First of all, we're not spending; we're investing. Secondly, do you really appre-ciate or comprehend the magnitude of investment in other parts of Canada and understand the reason why? Alberta being a good citizen, being a good partner in a strong Confederation known as Canada, has been pre-pared to assist the national economy by loaning money to other provinces.

When you take a look at the Heritage Savings Trust Fund today, you see the make-up of it: 57 per cent of the funds are found in the Alberta investment division. Those are the loans to the Alberta Home Mortgage Corpora-tion, the Alberta Housing Corporation, the Alberta Op-portunity Company, the Agricultural Development Cor-poration, the Alberta Municipal Financing Corporation, Alberta Government Telephones.

Thirteen per cent is found in the capital projects divi-sion, an enormity of activities. We've even got a little dirt-moving project not very far away from where I live outside Barrhead. It's on the Paddle River. We're build-ing a great big dam there to protect the flow of water. That will really help some 500 people in agriculture. Those of you who were in this Assembly as long ago as 1967 and 1971 will surely have heard my predecessor, a colleague of many of you, talk about the Paddle River. It was one of his dreams. I'm just delighted that for his satisfaction and for the satisfaction, as I said, of literally hundreds of individual farmers, the Paddle River project is now going.

The Canada investment division, Mr. Speaker, 16 per cent for Canada, in terms of loans to other provinces. I want to correct the Leader of the Opposition. He indicat-ed that we're really loaning money to the province of Quebec. That's not correct; he's wrong. There are no Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund loans to the prov-ince of Quebec. There are loans to Hydro-Quebec, but that is not the province of Quebec. We also lend money and have assisted the province of Manitoba. Other income-earning investments under the Heritage Savings

Trust Fund: 14 per cent. That gives you the total of the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund. It's important that we remember that, number one, it's savings, and that it's based on trust.

I was a member of this Assembly last fall when we had a great debate on the Heritage Savings Trust Fund and how people were administering it. Then some people suggested that all of a sudden somebody got up one morning and found out that $60 million had gone, disap-peared. Somehow it was away from us. We scurried in here for 30 days. Some of us — not me — even sat through what seemed to be an eternity one evening, and we had debate and we had question and we had speech. It was fascinating. And the whole thrust of it was that we lost $60 million, and somebody better go find it.

So after various speakers on the government side tried to calm down some hon. members on the opposition side, the government decided, okay, maybe we should have a study. You don't want to trust us; you don't want to appreciate that we're honorable people and that when we stand up in the House and provide an answer, that answer is based on truth, not on fiction. A letter was sent. The Auditor General, an independent officer, did a report.

Mr. Speaker, I just want to make a few comments on the report, known as the Conspectus of a Report of the Auditor General of Alberta on Certain Matters Related to the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund. I want to make the comment, if I may, on the basis of some opening statements used by my colleague from Little Bow, who talked about such things as not telling the truth to the people, arrogance, callous attitude, doesn't want to hear the people of Alberta, do not trust. The document put forward by the Auditor states very, very specifically and very, very much to the point that:

The main conclusions contained in the report are

that throughout the life of the Alberta Heritage

Savings Trust Fund:

(a) no malfeasance, including fraud or collusion, has

occurred relating to marketable securities

owned by the Fund;

(b) satisfactory action [has been] taken by the Gov-

ernment respecting audit observations and

recommendations made pursuant to the

Auditor General Act in connection with

marketable securities owned by the Fund;

(c) marketable securities owned by the Fund were

adequately safeguarded and accounted for.

We're talking about trust, and that was the trust. The Auditor even goes one step further and says:

In the event that fraud had been discovered, or

marketable securities had not been adequately safe-

guarded or accounted for, or audit recommendations

had been ignored, the Auditor General would have

reported these matters previously in an annual or

special report to the Legislative Assembly.

The Auditor even went beyond his own good offices and got hold of a firm in Vancouver, British Columbia, and asked that firm

to perform an independent performance appraisal of

the Fund for the thirty months during which most of

the $60 million loss was incurred.

The firm provided an opinion letter. I think it's important as well. I'd like to read it as part of my contribution to the Speech from the Throne and the amendment put forward by the Member for Little Bow. The Auditor's consulting firm said:

Combined Marketable Bonds plus Short Term Se-


curities [of the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund]

when compared against similarly structured Fixed

Income Funds . . . demonstrated superior combined

performance.

Mr. Speaker, that was there last fall. We've now gotten over it.

A few comments on special warrants. I'm very, very fascinated by the whole question, phraseology, and com-ments put forward by my colleague on the question of special warrants. It seemed we had question after ques-tion after question on a daily basis about a beef cattle program for our very hard pressed beef producers in this province, and we talked about it and talked about it, and we had to get a good, fair assessment of what was happening on a province-wide basis — how many people were hurting and the like. They said, why don't you get going with it, why don't you deal with it? Well we did. We've got a production assistance program. We reacted to it with a special warrant last winter. If we hadn't done that, our farmers would still be hard pressed and waiting to see what we'd do.

Let's just take a look to see where special warrants are going. The Member for Little Bow said that some $632 million had been expended in special warrants in 1981-82. He's wrong. It's actually a little more than that; it was about $637 million. But item number one in the special warrant proposal was to agriculture: $153 million for production assistance to beef cattle, sheep, hogs, feed freight assistance, and the like. A second very important area in special warrants — again for people — in the form of forestry protection: $105,397,000. My constitu-ents, the people in Swan Hills, want to say thank you to the government of Alberta for being in a position to provide that special warrant. Otherwise Swan Hills would not be here today; it would have been nothing but a pile of dust and ash.

A third active major expenditure area we're talking about in terms of expenditure in special warrants: appeals and deficits through active care hospitals, $52 million. Regional and municipal water sewer programs came fourth on the list of expenditures under the special warrant provisions: $48 million. Fifth on the list, Alberta Transportation received $47.5 million for the construc-tion and maintenance of highways.

People programs: our good citizens in this province who happen to live in Calgary are going to get a new coliseum. I think we all agree the coliseum should go. There was some assistance under special warrants, to the tune of $22 million. The Member for Calgary Millican smiles. But the people of rural Alberta were not forgot-ten. Under the major cultural/recreation grant program, they came in seventh on the question of special warrants, with the expenditure level of some $22 million.

Eighth on the list: energy research, $21.5 million. My, isn't that important; this is an agricultural/energy prov-ince. Water management is important in some parts of this province. We like dams in the constituency I repre-sent. I think the Dickson dam is another important expenditure: $21 million. Manpower contract settlements for active care hospitals, people who work in our hospi-tals. The other day the Member for Calgary Millican talked about some very, very gifted and dedicated people. They're not to be forgotten. There had to be some contracts to assist these people. They were funded in terms of salary settlements under the special warrants provision.

Mr. Speaker, we can go on. The gist of the whole thing is that special warrants are important if governments

care, if governments want to be in a position to react to ongoing problems, and if governments are prepared to say to people, look, we not only listen, but we're prepared to do something about the concern you have. We've talked before about the importance of special warrants when we had that tragedy in northern Italy. When the earthquakes came, Italians were out of homes, and many communities in this province came together to assist people.

Mr. Speaker, I think I'm just about running out of time, and unfortunately I won't be able to talk about some other subjects, including the Electric Energy Mar-keting Act which . . .

MR. SPEAKER: The hon. member and I have come to exactly the same conclusion with regard to the time.

MR. KOWALSKI: I'll sit down in just a fraction of a second, Mr. Speaker, by just saying thank you to my colleagues who paid very careful attention to what I was saying. I hope that perhaps I'll get in when the motion comes. Just to conclude, I am definitely opposed to the amendment put forward by the Member for Little Bow.


MR. SPEAKER: Before we deal with this amendment, may I mention to the House some difficulty that I foresee with the amendment. By reference to the document en-titled Speech to the Throne, the scope of it is so extensive that I could see that difficulty extending to both sides of the House. As hon. members know, there is a rule of practice which is pretty solidly established that when a matter has been decided in a session of the Assembly, that same matter may not be raised for further considera-tion subsequently in the same session unless in some way some further scope is found, or perhaps the previous decision is rescinded.

What we have here is an amendment proposed to the motion for the address in reply which is of such wide-ranging extent that to adopt the amendment would of course cause one set of difficulties, and could have the effect of taking a considerable list of topics out of the reach of the Assembly for consideration further in this session. To reject the amendment could constitute a nega-tive judgment on those same topics or on other topics, and hence also take those out of the consideration of the Assembly during the remainder of the session.

I haven't my Beauchesne here, but I have looked at it recently, and I'd like to refer to — I think it's page 124. If I'm not mistaken, the citation is No. 130, but I'm not sure of that; that's subject to checking. In any case, whatever it is, if the Assembly agrees, may I suggest that we might continue with the debate. Certainly the amendment is not as confining as some amendments might be. It's a rather unique amendment as a matter of fact, insofar as throne speech debates go. Might I respectfully suggest we con-tinue with the debate without being unduly restrictive — and certainly the speech by the hon. Member for Barr-head wasn't unduly restricted — while that matter is under consideration by hon. members, and perhaps someone might like to make a proposal or suggestion with regard to this amendment this evening or later on in the throne speech debate.


March 23rd 1972 ALBERTA HANSARD 16-59

HON. MEMBERS:

Agreed.MR. LOUGHEED:

Mr. Speaker, I move that the resolution be read a second time. MR. SPEAKER:

It was moved by the hon. Premier that the resolution be read a second time. Do you all agree?HON. MEMBERS:

Agreed.

head: INTRODUCTI ON OF BILLSBill No. 3

The Appropriation (Interim Supply) Act, 1972

MR. MINIELY:Mr. Speaker, I wonder if all hon. members shake their heads like

I do every time we watch the process that we just went through. Yet I understand that I am probably the person who provokes that process most. For the benefit of all new members, and I think we have many, we must go through that process each time a money bill is introduced. In this case the money bill I beg leave to introduce is The Appropriation (Interim Supply) Act, 1972, and the resolution was read out to you. I might just say that all hon. members probably know that the fiscal year end of the province is March 31, and that as of March 31, the funds of the province all legally expire for the current fiscal year we are working on. In view of this, it is very necessary that we have interim supply granted by this Legislature by March 31, which is the end of this month. Otherwise I am sure all hon. members will appreciate that many of our citizens will be adversely affected, citizens on social assistance, many other citizens, as well as our valued public servants in this province who would not get their pay cheques. I therefore move first reading of The Appropriation (Interim Supply) Act, 1972.

[With the agreement of the House, Bill No. 3 was introduced and read for the first time.]MR. HYNDMAN:

Mr. Speaker, the government asks for the unanimous leave of the Assembly, notwithstanding rule 592, to move to second reading of the said Bill, The Appropriation (Interim Supply) Act, 1972 at this time.

[Leave being granted, and upon a motion by Mr. Miniely, Bill No. 3 was read a second time.]

head: BUDGET DEBATE (Adjourned)

MR. PURDY:

Mr. Speaker, six years ago I had the pleasure of meeting our hon. Premier. At that time I said that Mr. Lougheed would one day be Premier of this province, and I thought at that time what a challenge it would be to work with him. Peter Lougheed has always advocated open government, and, when elected, getting all government MLA's involved. The appointment of non-executive council members to

vsztym

Highlight

16-60 ALBERTA HANSARD March 23rd 1972

task forces has been a tremendous boost for the individual member. I know that I am here to do a job, and likewise, am expected to get the job accomplished.

Mr. Speaker, I represent the Stony Plain constituency west of Edmonton, and this constituency has not had a voice for years. They know what open government is, but now that we have open government, they ask, "How much dare I use my elected representative?" The answer to my constituents is, "You elected me, use me, I will work for you."

As of October 1, 1971, I opened a local MLA's office in the town of Stony Plain. This office, Mr. Speaker, is open to the public one day a week and the response has been overwhelming. People now have a place where they can meet their elected representative. On one of the previous evenings, when the hon. Member for Smoky River presented his maiden speech and endorsed the hon. Minister of Agriculture for his competence in looking after the Department of Agriculture, getting fresh ideas, weeding out 1936 funny money ideas, the opposition side attempted to outvoice the hon. Member for Smoky River. And that is why they now sit on the other side of the House. It is evident that they should have been listening instead of talking.

The largest industry in Stony Plain is agriculture and this industry must be protected. Let me reassure the hon. members that it will be by the hon. member who sits on the right side of the Premier. Who else could fill the bill? Not very many have so many new ideas and strong thoughts on agriculture, not only for Alberta and Canada, but for our export markets. Keep it up, Hugh, you're doing a tremendous job. The hon. minister has helped the farmers in myconstituency by extending the guaranteed loans for female cattle into the Stony Plain constituency. Many of my farmers have takenadvantage of this and now have sufficient cattle that will next year boost their farm income.

Mr. speaker, the Stony Plain constituency has many industries, and to name a few will help acquaint members with the area west of Edmonton. Calgary Powers' two thermal plants on Lake Wabamun; Alberta Coals' two coal mining sites in the Wabamun area. Portobuilthomes in Spruce Grove; Temple Saw Mills in Stony Plain; a drillingmud plant in Onoway; and many small industries situated in various parts of the constituency.

The highways in this area are not as good as the previous administration would lead us to believe. We received correspondence at a community meeting a few years ago in regard to highway 16 west and it was addressed; "Re: Highway 16 east". The people along this highway were then given the impression that there was no highway 16 west. I wonder why this was not given recognition. I know why because of the poor design and the unsafe entrances into a lot of my towns which have caused unneeded highway deaths and many thousands of dollars in property damage. Highway 43 north is in about the same shape. Can you see, Mr. Speaker, approximately 20 school buses leaving Onoway and entering the highway at a crossing which, in my opinion, is unsafe? This crossing is half way down a hill with the speed limit on the highway of 60 miles an hour. This corner requires an overpass, or the hill cut down to allow a maximum amount of vision. This type of hazard is also evident at the Wabamun turnoff and the volume of traffic on No. 16 west warrants work on this overpass. This constituency has only 32 miles of four-lane highway, with only two completed overpasses and a third under construction at Winterburn. This highway needs other overpasses at Devon corner, Spruce Grove, Stony Plain and Wabamun. The highway also requires continuation of the four lanes to at least Seba Beach, and four lanes must be started to No. 43 north. The grid road system must beexpanded and this constituency needs at least two good high grade roads connecting Highways 16 and 43.


Mr. Speaker, in my constituency I have one of the wealthiest counties in the province, but because of high expenditures they require additional money, and I was only too pleased when the hon. Minister of Municipal Affairs increased the grant by 10 per cent. It was a fair increase, despite the overall financial position of the province. I hope that both the counties of Lac St. Anne and Parkland will receive their fair share, along with the towns of Spruce Grove, Stony Plain and Onoway.

The County of Parkland, as of January 1st, 1972, allowed the City of Edmonton, without opposition, annexation of approximately one and a half miles west of 170 Street, and from 118 Avenue to the North Saskatchewan River. But now the city wants more. Mr. Speaker, this time there will be opposition, and if required I will aid the county in every way possible.

I am very pleased to have one of the very first school community buildings in Alberta; this is in Spruce Grove. I must commend the hon. Member for Olds-Didsbury for his contribution, while Minister of Education, for seeing that this school became a reality for Spruce Grove.

Mr. Speaker, I have other school problems. There are only three high schools in my constituency. Children are being bused 40 miles, and this, for a rural area, is totally wrong.

We have expanded too fast in the centralization direction and should and will have to give some thought to the decentralization of our school system and to bringing the teacher to the student. I speak of three high schools, but if the previous administration had had their way this constituency would have ended up with two. The attempt to phase out Seba Beach High School was totally wrong, and it was only through the election of a new government and an Education Minister who had the insight to consider and agree with me that the Seta Beach High School was retained.

Mr. Speaker, the design of school buildings is totally wrong, and the resolution that was before the Assembly on Tuesday of this week pointed this out. Let's stop wasting the taxpayer's dollar and start building schools to educate children, not to allow certain groups to experiment with the tax dollar.

I support the elimination of school tax from property tax. Many of the aspects I have spoken about will cut the provincial budget for schools, especially community school use, school design and decentralization of schools.

Mr. Speaker, I feel that the small businessmen who are now located in rural Alberta should be given an allowance to aid their industry, and may I suggest that our telephone system be changed so that these people could receive a reduced toll fee.

The hon. Minister of the Environment, Mr. Yurko, has a firm hold on the environmental problems that exist, not only in rural Alberta, but in the urban centres. My constituency of Stony Plain is an area that is under question, and the Department of the Environment has taken, and will continue to take, a serious look at Lake Wabamun.

In February of 1970 the Conservation and Utilization Committee of the Department of Agriculture, (now the Department of the Environment) started working to co-ordinate the various studies and research projects on this lake, in order that an integrated long-term development plan for the area could be formulated, consistent with government policy of preserving it as a recreational site. A task force was subsequently established, drawn from staff members of the provincial and federal governments, the University of Alberta, and the Edmonton Regional Planning Commission. This group includes among its members men who have been carrying out the various research


projects on the lake. The cost is high in all cases and would add to the cost of power produced.

Expenditures on remedial measures, such as chemical herbicides or weed cutting and removal, were both used last summer, and this year the weed cutting operation will be expanded to one more harvester and two more barges. I believe with the help of Calgary Power, the provincial government and interested cottage owners, that Lake Wabamun will be saved as a recreational site.

Mr. Speaker, I will dwell on recreation for a minute. The hon. Member for Calder has the same thoughts as I have, that we require more covered ice arenas. The hon. member stated that in Edmonton the cost of a covered shell is approximately $116,000 without any annex. This cost, in my estimation, is high. A community in my constituency, Wabamun, recently built a covered ice arena with a 100 x 30 foot annex, with change-rooms, office, kitchen facilities, for a total cost of $112,000. Where is the difference? Has the city not enough scrutiny when these contracts are being awarded?

A parcel of land last fall was offered in the Winterburn area by the Stony Plain Indian Reserve to the City of Edmonton for the building of Omniplex. This was turned down by the city -- land that was not costing any money. It appears they want high priced land in the centre of Edmonton. Edmonton needs Omniplex and needs it now.

The budget is excellent, balanced, and a new outlook for Alberta. The capital requirements of the government have been planned well, and have been planned as all good businessmen plan, by balancing the operating end, and by long-term borrowing for capital projects. The highlights of the first Progressive Conservative Budget is a budget that will long be remembered by a large number of people in Alberta. This will be more evident for 27 members of the opposition, including the NDP member.

I have never seen so many dejected looking faces as I did on March 17th, when the hon. Provincial Treasurer brought down his budget, stating it would help senior citizens, agriculture, handicapped children, and many more people. The shock of such a well planned budget was a greater shock to the opposition than the jar they received August 30, 1971.

I wonder why in years before, the former government did not place more emphasis on agriculture. The family farm was in trouble, but with the increase of over 46 per cent over the 1971-72 expenditures for family development, increases of 124 per cent from the 1971-72 for an agricultural marketing thrust, and the new Agricultural Development Fund, agriculture will once again be our leading industry. I can see that with the new importance placed on agriculture our young farmer will stay on the farm, and rural Alberta will start moving again. It will not stay stagnant, as was evident before.

At this time, all the members on this side have seen this pamphlet. This was put into the hands of all farmers in the province by every rural candidate. For the record I will read what the Premier said:

"It is essential to Alberta agriculture to have a provincial government with new attitudes, and new directions. Agriculture is not merely a livelihood for many Albertans, it is a way of life.A Progressive Conservative government would be dedicated to the preservation of the family farm and to improving farm income. The Department of Agriculture would become a key government department and would aggressively involve itself in marketing and sales.


A Progressive Conservative government would not be defeatist in its approach, and would not turn over responsibility to the Ottawa government. We cannot promise easy solutions, but strong leadership and a determination to try every available avenue. This is the pledge that the Alberta Progressive Conservative Party can make to the farmers of Alberta. We have more farmer candidates than any other occupation, and each of them joins me in this pledge."The challenges were: a market emphasis must be achieved in

Alberta agriculture; the Alberta government must accept that it has a joint responsibility with the federal government for the prosperity of agricultural producers in Alberta; high priority must be given by Alberta to programs that improve cash income for farmers; ownership of land should remain with Alberta residents, and the preservation of the family farm must be an objective of government policy; a balance must be struck between government assistance and the farmers' desire to control their own industry as free enterprisers; a billion dollar farm income should be our target in Alberta.

And, Mr. Speaker, I can say that at least 90 per cent of this has happened since August 30th.

I did a study this year on the T & T Report, and that report stated that 14,000 farmers in Alberta would have to leave the farm and another 18,000 be upgraded. That, Mr. speaker, is a large percentage of rural Alberta. Let me reassure the hon. members that I did not agree with the consultants who were hired to do this study at a cost of approximately $100,000. I wonder if the consultants did not receive their direction from the previous social Credit thinking. When the election campaign started, Social Credit said: "Let's save the family farm", but I did not see any literature setting out their facts of how this could be accomplished. The only literature I have seen is what I read here a minute ago, and this was placed in the hands of all farmers by all rural candidates and by a man who knew rural Alberta, a man who went out to meet the people, who didn't let the people come to him. Our Premier, Peter Lougheed, has saved Alberta from a floundering debt, and has planned new directions for Alberta, and once again our rural people will have a choice of life to look forward to. With the Premier, the hon. Minister of Agriculture, and 46 government MLA's working together, agriculture in Alberta will lead in Canada.

Mr. Speaker, I take exception to the remarks made by the hon. Member for Macleod. Reading between the lines of what he said, and knowing he is from a farming area where most farmers farm townships, half townships, and sections of land — but my constituency is made up of the backbone of Alberta farmers, who farm half sections and quarter sections. These are the farmers who keep the agricultural industry going and I say that the farmers in southern Alberta who are farming these large crops are exploiting the rest of the rural farmers in Alberta.

I challenge the hon. Member for Macleod to go into my constituency of Stony Plain, or the constituencies of Barrhead, Smoky River, Drayton Valley, Camrose, Stettler, or any rural constituency which is made up of the small farmer, and make the statements that he made in the House the other night about small farmers.

Our senior citizens have at last received a break, a deserving break. They are the people who built this province with sweat, tears and many hardships. Why so long forgotten about? I will tell you why! A very arrogant approach towards senior citizens was used, with no forethought for their future. The previous administration did with senior citizens what a farmer does with an old animal, let it out to pasture to die. A very unreal approach for your folks and mine.


Mr. Speaker, I believe that the hon. members from the opposite side must have had parents, but the way senior citizens were treated, it is a good question. Premium-free coverage for medical drugs, optional health services, a $50 grant for renting accommodations, and the exemption from 30 mill property tax will aid the senior citizens.

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure to be present at a function in which a member from the former government did some speaking during the evening. With very much interest to me, he stated that within the government, when he was a member, there was a division between the Executive Council and the backbenchers. In fact he said there was a blanket - a communication gap. Well, Mr. Speaker, there's no blanket between the Executive Council and the other MLA's in this government. In fact it's an honour to belong to such a team, a team that is involved in government, a team whose members can see a Cabinet minister when matters warrant, a team that meets in open caucus, and a team that wants to do a job for Alberta.

Taking the average age of the government members, I would say that we have a very young group. We have inherited a large debt and a few white elephants. One is a $125 million railroad so that our coal could be shipped out of Alberta. Herbert C. Hoover once said "Blessed are the young, for they shall inherit the national debt" - so true in Alberta. We have, Mr. Speaker, a young group of government MLA's who have inherited a debt, but who are ready and willing with new ideas to pay this debt off. Thank you.MR. HO LEM:

Mr. Speaker, first may I say it's a real privilege for me to follow such an enthusiastic speaker, with so much steam. I am, Mr. Speaker, deeply honoured to have this opportunity tonight of addressing the hon. Premier, the hon. ministers of the government, and members of this Assembly as the Member for Calgary McCall. This assignment is, for me of course, a real pleasure, and at this time I wish sincerely to congratulate the efforts of another new member in this Assembly for what I consider an outstanding contribution, for his preparation and the delivery of the budget address. Speaking again as a new member, and solely as such, I do appreciate all the more the efforts put into this budget by the hon. Provincial Treasurer.

Having said that, Mr. Speaker, and I do so sincerely, may I now make some introductory and explanatory remarks as to my role as the MLA on this side of the House on the subject of the budget address? I consider it my responsibility and my duty to the citizens of Alberta to:

(1) Endeavour to be alert and informed at all times in regard to all aspects of government spending.

(2) Keep an ever watchful eye on the various reserves, both natural reserves and monetary reserves that the previous government has so carefully built up through the years, and to make sure that these reserves are not squandered nor wasted, but spent wisely.

(3) See that the present government continues to improve on the Social Credit programs in the field of social legislation, a field in which the Social Credit party has given outstanding leadership to Alberta, and I hope that Alberta will remain as a leader in this field in Canada.

(4) Retain and improve the good provincial and municipal relationships which have been established through the years by the former government, so that the municipalities will continue to receive the maximum benefits through such good relationships.Examples of these are recreational programs funded by the province and operated by the municipalities, provincial grants for various

2- 18 ALBERTA HANSARD March 3rd 1972

MR. SPEAKERI regret that, regardless of the process by which my ruling was

arrived at, I no longer have any jurisdiction over that ruling, and I must leave it to the House.

Canadian Curling ChampionshipMR. NOTLEY:

Mr. Speaker, I am perhaps rather an unusual source to raise something that I think will unite the House, but I suggest that the point that I would like to bring to the attention of the House today will do just that. I am referring to the Alberta Rink which will be representing our province in the Canadian Curling Championship playoffs in St. John's, Newfoundland.That rink comes from my constituency and is composed of Mervin, Melvin and Terry Watchorn and Jim Fox. Mr. Speaker, I am sure that the hon. members of this Assembly will join with me in asking you to convey to the Watchorn Rink our very best wishes as they represent Alberta in the Canadian Briar playoffs.

MR. SPEAKER:

I take it that the House agrees unanimously with the suggestion of the hon. Member for Spirit River-Fairview and I shall follow the instructions of the House.

head: THRONE SPEECH DEBATE

MR. TRYNCHY:

Mr. Speaker, I beg to move, seconded by the hon. Member for Calgary McKnight, Mr. Lee, that a humble address be presented to his Honour, The Honourable J.W. Grant MacEwan, Lieutenant Governor of the Province of Alberta:

"We, Her Majesty's loyal subjects, the Legislative Assembly, now assembled beg leave to thank Your Honour for the gracious speech Your Honour has been pleased to address to us at the opening of this present Session."

Mr. Speaker, as we start the first session of the 17th Legislature, let me extend my congratulations to you, not simply for the honour that has been done you for your selection as the Speaker, but also for the way you have earned that honour. Throughout a life of distinguished service to Alberta it would be very hard to find a man better qualified to serve in your high office. You live in the capital and you have worked in the countryside, and you have always been an active student of law and legislatures. In your church, family, professional, and public life you have earned a reputation for being both firm and fair, and I know this whole House holds you in that confidence and high respect.

Let me also extend congratulations to the others who sit herefor the first time, and there are many of us, as well as to those whowere sucessful in seeking re-election on August 30, 1971. Naturally we hope that in elections to come, there will be a much higherproportion of members re-elected, especially on this side of theHouse. I would also extend congratulations to our newly elected member, the hon. Member for Stettler. I want to extendcongratulations to those members who have accepted Cabinetresponsibilites, and especially to the hon. Premier. The election was more than just a personal victory for the hon. Peter Lougheed, itwas proof of what a man with determination and drive, with an ableteam, can do in Alberta, and now those same qualities of leadership are being applied to the business of government.

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Highlight

March 3rd 1972 ALBERTA HANSARD 2- 19

Mr. Speaker, some moments in life take on a very special meaning, I believe the present moment to be such a one, not only for myself, but also for my family and for my fellow citizens of the Whitecourt constituency, whatever their political affiliation. It is a great honour to me and to the Whitecourt constituency to be invited to move this address in reply to the Speech from the Throne. At this time I want to thank the hon. Premier for that privilege. Apart from the personal honour, it seems particularly appropriate that this opportunity should be given to the representative of the Whitecourt constituency, because in a sense we are a pocket edition of the whole Province of Alberta. Within our boundaries are old districts with settled traditions and brand new towns, people who have lived long lives in one place and others who have moved in the day before yesterday. Many of Alberta's rich resources can be found in the Whitecourt constituency. We have agriculture, oil, gas, timber and water, and like the province our communities are formed by people whose ancestors came from many parts of the globe.

It is perhaps fitting that a new member, from a new constituency, be the first to speak in the Legislature after the election of a new government. The voters, on August 30th, changed more than the government. Anyone who looks down the ranks of new ministers and new MLA's in this government can see that we have elected a new generation of Albertans to conduct our affairs.

Most of us respect what has been done in the past in this province, particularly under Mr. Manning, but we realize that times change and you can't run a government in the '70's and '80's with men and methods of the '50's and '60's. The big change is a change in attitude. Changes will be viewed, but not just for the sake of change. They will be viewed with optimism, new opportunities and a sense of challenge.

We had become an inward-looking province, living at home with our shades pulled down. Now we are an outward looking province, seeking new markets, welcoming new ideas, recognizing there are concerns we have to resolve in Ottawa and elsewhere. We used to be a complacent province, living off our natural resources and making believe that everyone in Alberta was comfortable and well off. Now we are a concerned province, ready to face the fact that our natural resources can't carry us forever, and ready to recognize that life is not all that great, even in Alberta, if you are old, disabled, or poor. We used to be a traditional province which accepted changes slowly — now we have to be a leader among provinces.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to hear that we will be an open government; we will have written reports of daily proceedings that will enable Albertans to have an up-to-date report on matters affecting people in all parts of Alberta, and that are dealt with by their MLA's. We will have public sessions, open to TV and radio. Let the public see the work their elected members are doing and if they are worthy of continued support. I am glad to see that the Legislative Assembly will be called into session twice a year. For the first time in the history of Alberta we will have a regular fall session, so that matters of importance can be dealt with more effectively, and Albertans can be served in a more efficient manner.

Mr. Speaker, there is one major change which I think it is appropriate to mention now, and that is the change in the function of the MLA's. It has changed in two ways; first, we have more to do. Sometimes some of us think we have too much to do, but the fact is that many of the responsibilities that used to be carried by the ministers, civil servants, or outside advisers are now assigned to government MLA's, which is where they ought to be. Our government has set up five task forces of government MLA's to study critical areas and report back and recommend changes in the new and modern directions of government policy, which were so strongly voiced in the last election campaign.


The second change in our role is perhaps even more important. I am here as a supporter of the government, but first of all I am here as a supporter of the people of Whitecourt, and if the government goes against the people of Whitecourt in my constituency, then I go against the government. This is what I call democracy. Premier Lougheed is, perhaps, the only leader in this country who had the courage to declare the principle of people before party. He has already proven in many ways that he intends to honour that commitment, and I can speak for the members on this side of the House that we intend to honour it too.

Changing the government in Alberta is a little like passing a family farm from a father to a son. The son has more energy and more knowledge of the modern world, but if he is wise he will make his changes carefully, reviewing what was done before him, finding out why it was done, making sure that each change is an improvement. He knows he has to make certain fundamental changes if his unit is to prosper, but he also knows that his responsibilities are too important to play around with — too much is at stake. A sensible farmer wouldn't switch from growing wheat to growing grapefruit, not if he wanted to stay in business, and this government has shown equal good sense in making changes in an orderly and deliberate way.

There have already been several important changes in direction by the new Government. The Department of Federal and Intergovernmental Affairs to ensure Alberta of getting its fair share from Ottawa has been placed under the leadership of the hon. Mr. Getty. A Department of Advanced Education has been formulated to be responsible for all educational programs and vocational and technical institutions, colleges and universities. The Department of Labour has been changed to Manpower and Labour, with the minister in charge of our new priority employment program to ensure employment to many employables during the winter slack period, and also the student flow into the work force in the summer months.

What the hon. Premier promised in the campaign was new directions for Alberta, and we see that clearly in the reorganization of the Department of Agriculture to emphasize finding new markets for what we produce. We see it in the emphasis on incentives and investment in Alberta industry; our financing system is under review as part of a program to help the average Albertan to invest in Alberta, and where new markets are being sought in Scandinavia and across the Pacific. We see it in a new direction in the clear commitment of the matter of highest priority to relieve financial pressure on those senior citizens whose work has built this province, and in the determination to act now to help the disabled and those people with problems of mental health. We see it in the active, yet firm, stand Alberta takes today towards Ottawa. This province isn't going to be pushed around.

Mr. Speaker, as you know, my constituency of Whitecourt is in rural Alberta. People used to think of rural areas as being places where nothing changed very much, where everything was stable. That was never the case, and it's not the case today. In fact, changes affecting our communities are probably more serious than those affecting cities, if only because we are not so used to sudden change. The changes in Whitecourt are of two kinds. The first kind of change is welcome; that is the sudden movement in of new people, new jobs, even whole new towns. The new town of Whitecourt itself is only ten years old and it acquired formal town status only a few months ago, and Fox Creek has grown to a population of over 1500 people in the last five years. That is a welcome change, although I'm not satisfied that the government has paid enough attention to helping those communities diversify and dig deep roots.

The other kind of change is not welcome at all, and that is the change brought about by uncertainty in agriculture. It has forced some people off farms and forced many young people who have counted

March 3rd 1972 ALBERTA HANSARD 2- 21

on a good and useful career in farming to wonder if they will have to leave the rural life they love so much. It could mean thedestruction of the economy and the way of life that has been the backbone of Canada. Most of the people I represent are very pleased that the Hon. Dr. Horner is the man in charge of our agricultural policy; he knows our problems and we know he is sincere about solving them. But we need more than just a good man in charge of agriculture; we need a recognition that the problems of rural Alberta are every bit as serious as the problems of the cities. They might even be more serious because the trend has been for the cities to grow, and this has not been the trend outside the cities.

I am pleased that the government has established a cabinet level committee to look into the problem of rural development, because this is one of those questions which Alberta has to face because no one else is facing it. If we don't work out programs to strengthen the family farm and diversify industry into smaller communities, then no

one will.

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to see in the Throne Speech mention of an Agricultural Development Fund of $50 million to cover all areas of agricultural credit, with special programs for the young farmer and the small farmer. Marketing will be stressed very strongly and the Department of Industry will join the Department of Agriculture to assure the farmers of every possible market that is available throughout the world. The change of administration of the Surface Rights Act from the Department of Mines and Minerals to the Department of Agriculture will, I am sure, be a welcome by all farmers.

There are other special problems in Whitecourt that I want to raise today. The one problem that I wish to mention is industrial development. We must create a more diversified and better provincial economy, by giving more emphasis for new development in the smaller centres of Alberta. Whitecourt in itself could be called the Gateway to the North. We must be ready to take advantage of that area. We must provide a provincial park in the Whitecourt area to take care of the expansion in tourism by the people coming from Banff and Jasper on to Whitecourt and then north to Alaska. Truly, this gives us the Gateway to the North.

We see the need for extension and improvement of Alberta highways, with more emphasis upon rural development and the grid road system. And speaking of roads, everytime we have a wet year, and as you know last year, 1971, was quite a wet year, we have to travel from Whitecourt to Carvel Corner and then back to Jasper if we want to get across. We need more roads that connect Highways 43 and 16 to be able to allow people to move back and forth. We must have roads that lead from our parks and from Edmonton into Whitecourt and up to the north to take care of the tourist trade. I am sure the hon. Member for Barrhead would welcome a road from Swan Hills to Whitecourt to make sure that the people can get across to our parks without having to travel to Edmonton and then back again.

I have outlined some of the problems in my constituency but there are many more, and I hope to be able to bring them before the House during this session in the weeks ahead. We in the Whitecourt Constituency have been called the 'forgotten corner' for too long to suit me, and when things arise that concern the Whitecourtconstituency you will hear me loud and clear.

This being an historic moment for Alberta, with a new government in control after 36 years of Social Credit administration and the first Progressive Conservative government in the history of Alberta, Mr. Speaker, I want to say to the hon. members on both sides of the House just why I feel we are on the threshold of great things to come in the years ahead. I would like to mention just two items from the Throne Speech which I believe to be outstanding topics. Our


government is to start a new approach by presenting to the Legislature a series of new direction papers so that the members and also the public can have first hand information on policy positions or any alternatives which may form government policies in the future. With this approach, the public will have a better understanding of any issue that will be brought before the House, and will therefore have ample opportunity to respond to their elected MLA's and to the government as to their feelings on any issue. It is in this way that we can truly have open government and involvement by every Albertan that so desires.

A second point. MLA's will have a reasonable opportunity to propose public bills requested by their constituents, and if they are constructive and in line with the new directions of this government they may be debated and passed and be part of government policy, a policy which was frowned on by the former administration.

Mr. Speaker, the Speech from the Throne clearly underlines the commitment of this government to plan change carefully in new and modern directions in Alberta life. Now considering that this government has been in office barely six months, following a government that had been in office 36 years, the action that has been taken already is clear proof of the sincerity of how these changes will be developed. It has been a great privilege for me and for the people of the Whitecourt Constituency to be invited to move this reply. Mr. Speaker, I wish to thank you.MR. LEE:

Mr. Speaker, it is a very distinct privilege for me, representing the citizens of Calgary McKnight, to second the motion thanking His Honour for the Speech from the Throne.

At the outset, I wish to pay tribute to a past member of this Legislature. Jack Robertson was a member of the Legislature for only a short time before his untimely death and did not have an opportunity to sit in this Assembly. But through his short term of office and through his many years of service in the Stettler area, he has left an imprint on all those he served. We have mourned his passing and now we honour his memory.

And I want to express my personal tribute to former members of the Legislative Assembly, many of whom are not present today, many who have completed their years of service, for their very considerable contribution to our province and to its people over past sessions and over past decades. But in August of last year, the people of Alberta were seeking new directions and new initiatives for their province, and so they elected the first Progressive Conservative government ever to serve in the Province of Alberta, to express in operational terms that progress which they were seeking for themselves and for Alberta. The hon. member for Whitecourt, in moving for acceptance of the Speech, has commented most effectively on various areas of this document, and I, too, want to reflect on many dimensions of the speech and its implications for Alberta and for my own constituency of Calgary McKnight. But first, I want to go back to last fall and examine the record of our new government at its outset.

In the first few months of office, the members of the new administration, and especially those who are Members of the Executive Council, have faced a number of demanding conditions - demanding, because immediately our cabinet must evaluate the policies, procedures, and personnel they have inherited from the former government. They must evaluate in such a way that they will not bring a disservice upon those people under government employ or upon the citizens of the province at large. They had to deal with a number of individual concerns where people had been unable in past

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