United Conservative Party leader Danielle Smith and NDP leader Rachel Notley faced off in a debate Thursday night that focused on affordability, health care and the economy — three topics exclusive polls from Ipsos Reid for Global News have shown are of most importance to Albertans.
Both party leaders took to the podium to answer questions submitted by both Albertans and a consortium panel of journalists ahead of the live broadcast in what was a feisty debate which came down to the topic of who voters should trust, according to one analyst.
Trust a key message of the debate
Smith said you can’t trust the NDP leader to run the economy, while Notley said you can’t trust the UCP leader not to privatize Alberta’s health system.
The debate came on the same day the province’s ethics commissioner found Smith, in her role as premier, broke conflict-of-interest rules.
Notley said she has never breached conflict of interest legislation, adding voters can’t trust Smith and her actions have created fear.
“Every day is a new drama, you just don’t have to put up with this,” Notley said.
Smith did not address the conflict-of-interest finding but described herself as “imperfect.”
Both candidates have been premier of Alberta — Smith since October 2022 until the writ drop and Notley from 2015 to 2019 — and both admitted they’ve made mistakes.
But each argued they have the best vision for a petro-rich province struggling to fix health care and education.
“My commitment to each of you if re-elected is to serve you with everything I have and to the best of my ability, however imperfect that may be at times,” Smith said.
“Whatever I may have said or done in the past while I was (a host) on talk radio, Albertans are my bosses now — and my oath is to serve you and no one else.”
Notley said she, too, may not have always got it right.
“But I say what I mean and I mean what I say,” she said.
“If I am premier again, I will work daily to earn your trust and to focus on your priorities.”
The two leaders spent the one-hour debate speaking to each other and past each other, launching broad rhetorical salvos mixed with sharp asides on the economy, policing, green energy, education and health care.
Mount Royal University political scientist Duane Bratt said the issue of trust outweighed all other points in the debate.
“Smith argues, ‘You can’t trust Notley because she brought in a carbon tax without campaigning on it.’ But I think Notley had a better response, says, ‘You can’t trust Smith because she has been talking about private health care for 15 years and is now pledging a public health guarantee and, more importantly, broke the law by violating ethics on behalf of someone who wanted to kill police officers,'” Bratt said in reference to Smith’s phone call with Calgary pastor Artur Pawlowski, who was recently found guilty of mischief and other charges for his role in the Coutts border protests over COVID-19 restrictions.
“That’s a pretty strong statement, but Smith really didn’t have an answer for.”
Bratt said both leaders appeared to have a clear strategy going into the debate and focused on the issues they think are important to Albertans.
“Notley tried to emphasise health care and go after Smith’s prior record of endorsing more private health care. Smith, for her part, spent a lot of time attacking Justin Trudeau and Jagmeet Singh and linking Notley to them, as well as attacking Notley’s record as premier.
“It’s almost like Notley was the incumbent and Smith was the challenger — instead of the other way around.”
This is the first time Albertans have witnessed a two-person provincial election debate, Bratt noted.
Affordability in Alberta
When it came to the ongoing affordability crisis, Smith said if re-elected the UCP would offer an eight per cent personal tax rate, $1,500 per family given, and extend the current fuel tax rebate to the end of the year.
She also said the current inflation crisis was created by the “Liberal NDP coalition in Ottawa” – an oft-used phrase from the UCP leader.
Notley fired back that under the UCP, many Albertans’ utility bills “look more like a mortgage payment” and car insurance “looks more like what you save up for your whole summer vacation.”
Notley said when it came to affordability, the NDP would put a cap on car insurance and help families reduce utilities, and would ensure residents never have to pay for access to a family doctor, also saying Smith believes people should pay more for health care.
Smith countered that the UCP wouldn’t make Albertans pay for a family doctor either.
What to do about the health-care system?
The leaders were also asked about fixing Alberta’s overwhelmed health-care system.
Smith said when she was elected leader of the UCP seven months ago, the system was on the brink of collapse but said her party has fixed the problem of high hospital wait and EMS response times — something Notley said isn’t true and Albertans are frustrated with being told that.
“The answer is to get more Albertans access to a family doctor,” Notley said.
She pointed to the number of unfilled medical residency positions across the province — Alberta had the highest number in a decade after a second round of matching ended with 22 family medicine training spots vacant. Notley said family doctors are being scared away from Alberta because of the UCP.
“Ms. Smith is doing things like referring to them as tyrants and suggesting that people who follow public health orders are Nazi sympathizers and these things undermine the ability to attract frontline health-care professionals,” Notley said.
“They don’t feel respected and they don’t feel that government is at all focused on science and having their back.”
Smith fired back, saying hospital wait times went up during the NDP’s time in power and Notley didn’t do enough to reform health care.
“Ms. Notley isn’t running at all on her record from when she was premier, because she would have to admit that surgical wait times actually went up for nine surgeries,” Smith said. “She’d have to admit that she didn’t actually have the courage to take on the challenge of reforming health care. I do.”
Both leaders were also asked what policy of their opponent they agreed with and why.
Notley addressed two things: saying the NDP would expand the Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation brought in under Jason Kenney, and would maintain the UCP-expanded funding of the film and TV tax credit.
Smith did not respond with a specific policy of the NDP but rather talked about how physicians are choosing to pursue other specialities over family medicine, and said she believes both her and Notley would support team practices for doctors to work with nurse practitioners, LPNs and other health professionals.
Both leaders were asked about education, during which Smith said the NDP never gave teachers a raise but the UCP did — a comment Bratt said he found odd.
“Smith attacked Notley for not giving teachers a raise when she was premier, which goes totally against the narrative the UCP has tried to build up that the NDP is in the pockets of unions and union bosses and gives the unions whatever they want. And yet at the other point says, ‘Yeah, but not the teachers’ association.’ So that was a bit of a mixed message,” he said.
Why should Albertans trust you?
Towards the end of the debate, both leaders were asked about trust.
Smith was asked about the broken conflict of interest rules but did not address it, instead going on the attack over the NDP’s carbon tax while in office, increased business taxes and provincial deficit. She said under the UCP, “Alberta is back on track.”
“We have more people coming in here than ever before. Our ‘Alberta is Calling’ campaign is working,” Smith said.
When it came to trust, Rachel Notley was asked why Albertans should trust the NDP to manage the province’s finances. She replied that the NDP has released a costed platform that would maintain a cumulative surplus of $3.6 billion over three years.
“The other thing I would say, I’ve been in office since 2008 — I have never actually breached the conflict of interest legislation. Ms. Smith cannot say the same,” Notley said.
Who won the debate?
Bratt said at the start of the debate, Smith appeared poised and well-spoken while Notley came across as nervous.
“But near the end, when Notley was able to go on the offensive over the ethics report, I think Smith did get a bit rattled.”
Bratt noted there were a lot of claims made during the debate, but perhaps not enough information for undecided voters to make up their minds.
“I think you have to do some fact-checking. You have to read their platforms. But most people are not going to do that. So you take the information that you have and rely on your gut,” he said.
He said there’s no single issue that is going to drive this election.
“Is the issue going to be about health care? Is the issue about oil and gas? Is the issue about trust? Each voter is going to make up their mind on that.”
In a recent Global/Ipsos poll that asked for opinions from 800 Albertans who are eligible to vote, 43 per cent of respondents said Thursday’s televised leaders debate “will be an important factor in my vote decision.” Another 40 per cent disagreed with that statement while 16 per cent said they didn’t know.
Bratt couldn’t say if there was a clear winner of the debate, adding that will be up to Albertans when the go to the polls on May 29.
“There’s still 11 days to go. A lot can still happen. After all, we did not predict the last couple of days.”
The debate was moderated by Global Edmonton’s Scott Roberts and CTV News’ Erin Isfeld and was televised live on Global TV, CTV, CBC and CityNews across Alberta, along with a livestream on Postmedia.
For more information about the Alberta provincial election, visit Global News’ Alberta Elections 2023 page.
— with files from Phil Heidenreich, Global News and Dean Bennett, The Canadian Press
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