Four candidates vying to lead new Alberta party face off in first debate
CALGARY — The four men vying for the leadership of Alberta’s new United Conservative Party focused their attacks on Alberta’s NDP government and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rather than each other during the first official debate Wednesday.
Brian Jean, Jason Kenney, Doug Schweitzer and Jeff Callaway sought to persuade party members crammed into a Calgary concert hall that they have what it takes to oust Premier Rachel Notley in 2019 and fight for Albertans’ interests in Ottawa.
The candidates took turns promising to undo the provincial carbon tax, decrying a hike in the minimum wage and pledging to get Alberta’s fiscal house in order by reining in spending.
There were also swipes at the federal equalization program — through which payments are meant to even out fiscal disparities between so-called “have” and “have-not” provinces — and Ottawa’s lack of action of building new market-opening pipelines.