I love this idea.
Conditional upon attaining a surplus budget, the Wildrose government would share 20% of revenues collected from Energy. When Oil and Gas booms, the entire economy picks up and so do government revenues. Instead of blowing it on anti-Alberta propaganda to try and placate forever unhappy eco-nuts, Why not share the proceeds with the owners of those resources? Give some of that money directly to each and every Albertan.
Its ingenious. It only happens when there is a surplus. Every doctor, teacher and every other expense is paid before any checks can go out. Imagine that.
The citizens who own the resources*, and government itself, will have a direct stake in the success and efficiency of those assets. Every individual will be aware of the governments balance sheet. Albertans will get a quantitative reward for supporting fiscally responsible government and pro-energy policies.
While I agree with permanent tax cuts, this policy avoids constant tinkering with the tax code. It only kicks in when the government can afford it. No need to find new revenue in leaner times and hike taxes. No need to cut services either since Wildrose will be rightsizing (fat trimming) the government regardless of the economy.
Of course there will be the nay-sayers nasally naying away. If elites are so concerned that I might buy WR beer with my dividend then why don't they offer suggestions on how it should be spent? Why do they try to take it away and push me into some lineup for another government program? Who can differentiate one dollar from the next anyway? Can you track which dollar went to my mortgage and which went back into gasoline? You can't. Its a stupid argument.
Of course it won't work for the Progressive (PC) Party. They can't run a surplus except purely by accident. Should their out of control spending get hit by a surprise revenue windfall, champagne corks will fly at union halls across the province. Unchecked expansion hoe! Government will get fatter either way with Alison Redford left controlling.
Wildrose is the way to go. This is how smart conservatives think ahead. Make sure you and your friends vote Wildrose.
*The government we elect sells the rights to produce resources on our behalf and collects the royalties. We should get a cut of their cut.
6 comments:
It's just what Sarah Palin did in Alaska!
I like this idea - why not Alberta - we subsidize every other Canadian - its our turn since we pay most of the freight for the have not provinces. cheers
"The citizens who own the resources*"
Alberta owns the oilsands not Quebec or Ontario or to the eco nuts. It is ours whereas oil wells located outside the boundary of NFLD waters but within canadian waters belong to Canada. A big difference.
Out of the kindness of our recourses we have allowed other provinces to maintain their lives as they see fit.
Quebec lives off the provinces while maintaining and keeping their 'high' standard of living. soon to be changed by Alberta.
Mulclair wants two budgets. One for Quebec and one for the CANADA. Where he plans to get the wealth from to upkeep Quebec high lifestyles is beyond me nevertheless there is always NFLD to call upon or Sask. But I don't think that Brad Wall will give Quebec money while his province live cheaply.
@ BillM: Sarah Palin is awesome. Doesn't surprise me that this has been done before. Alaska remains an excellent place today.
@ fern: exactly
@ Jen: I mean citizen residents of this province of course. I don't think we pay equalization out of kindness do you? How is it kind to enslave generation after generation to entitlements? Look at them now and the hoopla over paying a tiny bit more for tuition? Trudeau has ruined these people. A province of babies. All the other parties in Alberta's election are aligned with Trudeau.
I like the common sense approach that Danielle Smith is taking on this. The fear mongering coming from the PCs is totally unfounded.
The funny thing about it is that Red Redford is forced to speak out against a highly popular action taken by her own party while Mason and Sherman have to try to explain why, after years of complaining that Albertans "don't get their fair share" unlike those lucky dividend cashing Alaskans, they suddenly are against Albertans getting a share of the resources.
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