Minister of Infrastructure Ray Danyluk announced last week his support for Progressive Conservative leadership candidate Doug Horner.
Horner will be on hand in St. Paul on Wednesday to answer questions at the Ag Corral from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. after stopping in Vilna at the Senior’s Centre in the morning and the afternoon in Lac La Biche to open the Bold Centre.
“He’s a good solid individual and has the same interests in education and community and advanced ed and municipalities and people that I do, “ said Danyluk. “I very much believe in Doug’s direction.”
Horner has experience as minister of agriculture, advanced education, liaison to the Canadian Forces and deputy premier, and has chosen the slogan “Let’s get it done right.”
Danyluk expects all leadership candidates to pass through St. Paul while campaigning for the premiership.
The leadership race is well underway in Alberta, with six declared candidates on campaign trails to seize the province’s top spot in politics. The winner of the race will become the next premier of Alberta when current Premier Ed Stelmach’s resignation becomes official. The first vote is scheduled for Sept. 17.
Danyluk said he does not see the experience that is necessary for a leader in candidate Doug Griffiths. He expects Gary Mar and Horner to be the frontrunners.
“It’s all individuals and I guess that’s the beauty of it. That’s what I appreciate the most,” said Danyluk. “I look at it as individuals bringing their position forward on how they feel the province should be led.”
“It doesn’t really matter who ends up winning this thing, it’s the same old 40-year-old government that needs to be changed,” said Wildrose Alliance candidate for St. Paul – Lac La Biche – Two Hills, Shayne Saskiw.
Some candidates have copied Wildrose Alliance policies and have distanced themselves from the government’s record over the last decade, according to Saskiw. Candidates have publicly raised concern over Bills 36 and 50, the Land Stewardship Act and the Electric Statutes Amendment Act. Saskiw said leadership candidates “got their hearing aids” and have started to listen to some of the people upset with land use legislation, but added the damage control was unlikely to work.
Former Minister of Finance Ted Morton said he opposes Bill 50, saying he would “immediately re-visit the transmission plans in Bill 50” and order an independent and impartial needs assessment by a panel of qualified experts, on his website.
“It’s an interesting thing to see these guys try to really distance themselves from the record and I just don’t think it’s credible,” said Saskiw.
“I think they know politically some of these bills have been very disastrous for them, particularly Bills 19, 36 and 50, and a lot of the candidates are having second thoughts on that despite voting in favour of these pieces of legislation … It’s a little bit disingenuous of them right now to backtrack.”
Horner was right in line with policy decisions through Stelmach’s tenure and would not change the current situation of Alberta, Saskiw said.
Danyluk disputed the view that the leadership race is an attempt by the party at damage control. “It’s very interesting that they come out against them (Bills 36 and 50) at this time and never did before when they sat around the table,” said Danyluk. “So that of course perplexes me.
“I just find it ironic that they speak out today but didn’t speak out before.”
On candidate Alison Redford, Saskiw said he thinks Alberta is ready for a female premier, even though he does not think voters care about gender, but rather substance and policy.
On other candidates: “Rick Orman has essentially copied the Wildrose,” contended Saskiw, adding that he thinks Gary Mar is not running a substantive policy campaign. Griffiths supports Bill 36, “which immediately tells me that there’s no respect for property rights and local decision-making,” Saskiw said.
