EDMONTON – One day after the Alberta government released its 2013-2014 budget, the Wildrose presented a fiscal plan of its own, which the party says would eliminate this year’s projected operating deficit.
In addition, the party says its Wildrose Financial Recovery Plan would cut the cash deficit in half and restore Alberta to a modest $15 million cash surplus by 2014.
“This is the fourth year we have a done a day-after response to the budget,” said Leader Danielle Smith Friday.
“In recent years we’ve called them an alternative budget. This year’s a little bit different. We are calling this one the Wildrose Financial Recovery Plan. It’s a package of proposals we will make to the government and to Albertans for how we can get out of the fiscal mess the PCs have put us in and how it could be solved.”
The Opposition says the deficit would be eliminated over two budget years by implementing 25 cost-saving recommendations which are:
Recommendation: Revoke the 8% MLA pay raise and return to the MLA salary that was in place after the 2012 election. Reduce cabinet salary by 30% ($1.5 million in savings)
Recommendation: Eliminate “Ministers without portfolio” and cut ministries to 16 ($5 million in savings)
Recommendation: Cut 10% from the Legislative Assembly Office ($6.7 million in savings)
Recommendation: Reduce the Public Affairs Bureau ($10 million in savings)
Recommendation: Eliminate political patronage posts (at least $2 million in savings)
Recommendation: Implement the Wildrose 10-year debt-free Capital Plan ($1 billion annual savings)
Recommendation: Postpone Federal Building add-ons ($4 million in savings)
Recommendation: Cancel Family Care Clinics ($145 million in savings)
Recommendation: End grants to for-profit companies ($230 million in savings)
Recommendation: Cancel AOSTRA 2 ($150 million savings beginning 2014)
Recommendation: Eliminate Alberta Enterprise Corporation ($99 million in savings)
Recommendation: Reduce government promotional spending ($20 million in savings)
Recommendation: Hold line on front-line public sector salaries until deficit eliminated (2014 under Wildrose plan) ($140 million in savings in 2013, $420 million in 2014, $700 million in 2015)
Recommendation: Reduce salaries, benefits, bonuses and severances for non-front line workers in government bureaucracy and AHS by 20% over four years ($428 million in savings in 2013, $343 million in 2014, $85 million combined in 2015 and 2016)
Recommendation: Defined contribution pension plans, not defined benefit, for all new hires (ongoing savings)
Recommendation: Limit all future severance agreements to a maximum of $100,000 for 10 years of service (ongoing savings)
Recommendation: Audit all departments and implement a zero-based budgeting process that includes third party experts to review all dollars spent ($700 million – $1 billion in savings)
Recommendation: Establish a Wastebuster program (ongoing savings)
Recommendation: Double the budget for the Auditor General and establish focus on value-for-money audits (ongoing savings)
Recommendation: Negotiate a better equalization deal (potentially billions in savings in 2015)
Comments