Premier's Speeches
Speeches
2009 Challenge North Conference
2009 Challenge North Conference
April 23, 2009
Premier Ed Stelmach attended the 2009 Challenge North Conference that was held in Cold Lake, Alberta. Challenge North is a tri-annual conference hosted by the Northern Alberta Development Council (NADC), it brings together leaders of communities, industry, service providers and government from across northern Alberta and other northern jurisdictions. Read Premier Stelmach's speech.
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Delivered on Thursday, April 23, 2009
Cold Lake, Alberta
Check Against Delivery
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.
Robin Campbell and the entire Northern Alberta Development Council have been doing some great work on behalf of our northern communities. And I would like to thank them and all their partners for promoting dialogue and bringing action on issues facing the region.
This conference is a great opportunity to come together at a critical time in our history.
Across Alberta, and around the world, we are seeing the effects of a severe economic downturn. Stories of uncertainty and upheaval are everywhere. And the North -- its industries and its people -- are feeling the strain of this downturn.
I know we are facing some unprecedented challenges. But I also know there are some very positive signs for the future.
In fact, just the other day, Scotiabank’s senior vice-president and chief economist said Canada is the best place in the world to weather the recession, and Alberta is the best place in Canada.
As Albertans, we understand the challenges and what we need to do to. We need to work together take advantage of our many strengths, and build our competitive advantage. We must turn challenge into opportunity, improve our productivity and sharpen our competitive edge.
Alberta’s economic plan
The strategy laid out in Budget 2009 is the approach necessary to help us achieve these goals. It follows the four-point plan we laid out months ago to position Alberta for the future.
The plan focuses on: keeping a close eye on government spending; drawing on our savings where needed to protect public programs and services; continuing to invest in public infrastructure to support jobs and the economy; and promoting Alberta to a global market.
This isn’t a plan based on ideology or knee-jerk reactions. It is a sound approach - a practical approach - to make the best of the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
Responsible spending
Albertans have worked hard to get our province in the enviable position we’re in. It didn’t happen by accident. And we are committed to using the advantages we worked so hard to create.
The global economy is expected to stabilize in late 2009, with recovery beginning in 2010. We are forecasting that rising energy prices and stronger exports will lead Alberta’s economy to grow by 1.8 percent in 2010.
And although we are forecasting a budget deficit this year, and smaller deficits for each of the next two years, we don’t have to borrow money to cover them.
We’re able to offset the deficits by transfers from our emergency savings - the Sustainability Fund - which sits at almost 17 billion dollars. This is exactly what the fund was meant to do - help smooth out the bumps of a volatile revenue stream.
We will also continue to be prudent in our spending, focusing on Albertans’ priorities.
We are also ensuring that Albertans and businesses have the freedom to spend and save as they see fit.
We’re continuing to keep taxes low, $3,000 to $5,000 lower per capita than in other provinces.
Investment in public infrastructure
And, just like when a family is faced with a tight budget, we’re focusing on our priorities, putting Albertans’ hard-earned money into the projects that are important to them, including investing in infrastructure.
As anyone in the North well knows, Alberta fell behind on infrastructure during the last economic downturn.
This time, we’re moving ahead with an ambitious program that we launched two years ago. This year, we are investing $7.2 billion in infrastructure, supporting more than 80,000 jobs.
Infrastructure is an investment for the long term, supporting economic growth in good times and bad.
In this part of the province, that includes investing in key priority roads highlighted in the Northern Highways Strategy prepared by the NADC, including work on Highway 63.
The environment
Another investment for the long term is our commitment to the environment.
I know that there have been some discussions during the conference on balancing energy and the environment.
The North is often seen as ground zero for this debate - it’s a place filled with incredible natural beauty, but also home to a large amount of energy development.
I think that Albertans want the same thing - a responsible approach to development.
We know that a reliable supply of energy will be needed to power economic recovery in North America and that energy revenues support programs and services valued by Albertans.
But, we also value our natural world, and are committed to preserving it for future generations. Because we know it’s the right thing to do.
That is why we are investing two billion dollars in carbon capture and storage technology - the largest commitment of its kind in the world.
And that is why we have some of the toughest environmental regulations in the world. And industry has stepped up with the innovation and expertise to meet them.
The world needs to know the whole picture about Alberta.
As you know, we are so much more than an aerial photo of a tailings pond.
Promoting Alberta and its products
We have a great story to tell, and so much to offer to the world. But all of that won’t matter if people have the wrong perception about who we are and what we are all about.
We are a part of a very competitive global market, and we need for people to know the real Alberta.
We need to get that story out to the many people who need to hear it.
We also want to help other Albertans, including businesses and municipalities, promote themselves and their products.
Challenges and opportunities in Northern Alberta
And I know there is a great deal to share about northern Alberta.
It’s impressive to see the initiatives that the council and its partners are working on. Together, you are tackling affordable housing, including a recent workshop here in Cold Lake. Together, you are working to make local industries stronger and more successful, from flax seeds to forestry. Together, you are looking at physician recruitment and retention.
And, together, you’re building the future, including through the NADC bursary program, which encourages young people to pursue their careers in the North, which more and more are choosing to do.
Many of the challenges we face are province-wide. And we are seeing great work between ministries and other partners to tackle diverse issues like the mountain pine beetle and physician recruitment and retention.
Yesterday, for example, our government announced the steps that we will take in partnership as part of a strategy to end homelessness in Alberta as we now know it. The work begins right now.
This year, we are committing $100 million to create 700 housing units, with an addition $32 million to tackle the causes of homelessness.
Cooperation and coordination are also the name of the game with land-use planning.
Under Alberta’s new Land-use Framework, regional land-use plans will be developed that consider the combined impact of all uses on the land, air and water to balance environmental factors with economic and social considerations.
The plans will help ensure that new land-use activities stay within the environmental impact thresholds for each region and keep us ahead of the curve in planning for our ever-growing province.
Quite simply, as Alberta enters its second century, we are at a critical point in our growth.
Ad hoc planning is a luxury we can no longer afford. We need coordinated development to support the prosperity and quality of life we all strive for.
You’ll see that theme in the cumulative effects environmental management approach we’re pioneering, which considers all the impacts of development across an entire region.
You can also see that same approach at work in the new Capital Regional planning board, the 20-year plan for infrastructure, the new plan for parks, the provincial energy strategy, the long-range, strategic plan for the oil sands, and new legislation to help plan and prepare for future large-scale infrastructure projects Alberta will need, such as utility corridors.
Conclusion
There is no doubt in my mind that this type of collaborative and coordinated work is the best way to tackle the challenges we are facing in the current economic climate.
For our part, the government is taking action on our four-point plan, so that Alberta emerges from recession with a competitive economy and the public infrastructure it needs to make a strong, rapid recovery.
By working together, the Northern Alberta Development Council and its many partners are securing future success for the region.
And I encourage you all to continue building success in the North through collaboration and innovation.
Thank you, and please enjoy the rest of the conference.
