James will get back to standing up for Edmonton Centre with these priorities:
Safer Streets:
Edmonton Centre residents know all too well that our downtown has a major crime, homelessness, mental health, and addiction crisis. Bail reforms by the Liberal Government let repeat offenders out far too easily, and leniency on open drug use has gone too far.
The Liberals’ Bill C-5 eliminated mandatory sentences for gun crimes and Bill C-75 made it easy to get bail. This means dangerous criminals are arrested in the morning and then back on the street that evening to find another victim.
These soft-on-crime policies need to be reversed. It’s time to take our downtown back and make it thrive.
Smart Energy and Environment Policy:
Overzealous green policies from the federal government drive up inflation for all Canadians, but they also chase away jobs and prosperity - especially for Albertans.
Environmental policies are important, but they have to be balanced with economic growth and common sense. Alberta is leading in many ways, whether it is wind and solar, net-zero hydrogen, significant emission reductions per barrel of oil, advanced agricultural practices, or carbon capture and storage. More importantly, we need to recognize that Canada only produces 1.5% of global GHG emissions.
Exporting our energy technology and expanding our LNG production to offset Asian coal expansion is the biggest difference we can make. But all this is threatened by the Liberals’ arbitrary demands like emissions caps on our energy sector by 2030, net-zero electricity by 2035, electric cars by 2035, tripling the carbon tax by 2030, and declaring plastics to be toxic. This suite of ideological policies is completely out of touch with reality.
If we work with industry on a common-sense path to being the world’s most responsible energy producer, everybody wins. If the Liberals continue their anti-energy policies, Canadians will be much poorer, our allies will turn to dictators for their energy needs, and Alberta’s future will be much bleaker.
Fiscal Responsibility:
The Liberals have created an inflation crisis in this country with their tax hikes, reckless spending, and lack of interest in basic monetary policy. Pierre Poilievre warned of this years ago, but Justin Trudeau kept spending and now everyday Canadians are paying in the form of high interest rates, and a more expensive cost of living.
Ottawa regularly goes out of its lane into provincial jurisdiction, and its hiring and contracting practices have enormous bloat. Spending on “consultants” has gone up a staggering $7 billion, or 70% since the Liberals took over in 2015. Sometimes consultants can be an effective way to avoid hiring more permanent employees for projects, but with this government we get more of both.
Federal bureaucrat numbers have ballooned by 40% since 2015, with 6.5% of that last year alone under this Liberal-NDP coalition government. This Liberal-NDP coalition has never seen a problem they can’t fix by announcing more spending or regulations on business. But their refusal to focus on outcomes means we are strangling our productivity with red tape and leaving an enormous debt for our kids without even being able to deliver basic services like getting you a passport.
The Next Election:
We need a strong, stable Conservative majority, and the next election can’t come too soon. Edmonton-Centre is a swing riding, and we need an effective, proven candidate for the Conservatives whose connections are deep with Edmonton-Centre. Ottawa needs to focus on its core responsibilities - and do them well. James will bring his business acumen and common sense to the task of getting you better government at a better price.