Reintroducing coal-powered electricity to Alberta’s grid and restricting which flags are flown on public property are among dozens of new policy proposals being brought forward by grassroots members of Premier Danielle Smith’s United Conservative Party.
The pitches, another being to make temporary residents pay for health care, were released recently by the party.
They are to be debated and voted on at month’s end at the party’s annual general meeting in Edmonton.
Smith’s government isn’t bound by the results, but one political watcher says the premier’s job security could depend on her moving forward with at least a few of the 35 proposals.
Energy is a hot policy topic this year, including a proposal to have Alberta ditch any strategy, agreement or regulation that moves the province closer to achieving net-zero emissions.
Another wants Alberta to bring back coal-powered electricity — something that was officially phased out just over a year ago. The last coal-fired power plant in the province switched to natural gas in 2024.
That resolution, put forward by the Taber-Warner constituency association, claims Canadian-mined coal is “clean” and that the phaseout just meant it’s being shipped overseas rather than used at home.
“It was a mistake to cut clean coal as it is the most affordable form of energy,” reads the argument submitted by the constituency association, which didn’t respond to an interview request.
Another common policy area is health care, with some party members looking to cut off temporary residents from publicly funded care and to stop funding late-term abortions except when medically necessary.
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The motion to make temporary residents pay for health care, put forward by the Calgary-Buffalo constituency, argues the federal government’s “unsustainable immigration policies” are straining Alberta’s health-care system and that Canadian citizens, permanent residents and approved refugees should be prioritized.
“Excluding temporary residents and other non-status individuals ensures equitable distribution of increasingly constrained resources,” reads the motion.
The policy proposal on abortion was submitted by four constituency associations.
It says the goal isn’t to restrict abortion access, but it also says Alberta’s public funding of third-trimester abortions places it “alongside regimes like North Korea.”
Alberta Health Services did not respond to questions about the resolution, but a provincial health website says abortions at this stage of pregnancy are rarely performed.
Lori Williams, a professor of political science at Mount Royal University in Calgary, said the resolution on abortion illustrates the tightrope that Smith must walk to keep some conservative voters from splintering.
Williams said legislating on abortion — something Smith has said she wouldn’t do — would likely produce heavy criticism, but said if the premier is seen to be ignoring the wishes of the more radical ranks of the party, then she risks being ousted like predecessor Jason Kenney.
“The challenge for Danielle Smith continues to be governing with a very well-organized, motivated base,” Williams said in an interview.
She said Smith’s leadership so far has been underscored by her ability to balance competing interests.
“The problem is if you appeal to an angry base and don’t deliver on what it is they’re expecting, then the anger can turn on you,” she said.
“The question becomes how many of those people on the right are dissatisfied, how many of them want more and do they want it badly enough to put more pressure on the government. If that pressure is successful, will it go too far for moderates?”
Another pitch on the docket this year is for Smith’s government to once and for all create a provincial pension plan.
It’s something the premier has gone back and forth on since taking office, and just this summer she toured the province seeking input on the idea before possibly sending it to a referendum next year.
Another resolution urges the government buy the RCMP’s Alberta operations and assets — including the right to employ its officers — to aid in the creation of a provincial police force.
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