Alberta’s Official Opposition Wildrose Party says Rachel Notley’s NDP government needs to stop dragging its heels and recall the legislature for the fall session.
The schedule calls for members to return next Monday, Oct. 31, for a five-week session that ends on Dec. 1. MLAs will get a week-long break in the middle, meaning they will sit for a total of 16 days.
“This isn’t what Albertans were hoping for when they voted for change,” Wildrose House Leader Nathan Cooper said.
“They wanted a government that was more respective of the process, as well as a government that really allowed for Albertans to be involved.”
The government points out that it is merely following the standing order that sets out the parliamentary schedule, and this length of session is right on par with fall sessions for the past decade.
“There are a ton of reasons to be back (already). We look at jobs and the economy, the amount of people out of work,” added Cooper, who initially made the call for an early return on Oct. 4.
“The government hasn’t made a priority to come back and address some of these very important issues.”
READ MORE: More jobs in Alberta in Sept., but little impact on provincial unemployment
By comparison, Alberta’s fall session does fall short of most other provinces across the country. In Saskatchewan, the fall session is scheduled to last for 25 days. Assembly’s in Manitoba and Quebec will both sit for more than 30 days, while the fall session in Ontario is scheduled to run for 42 days.
In British Columbia, the fall session was cancelled altogether as the Liberal government there prepares for an election in the spring.
Comments