Alberta government eyes legal changes to let physicians work publicly and privately Public health defenders say it’ll weaken an already weak health system. NDP says call an election over it — Premier Smith says no. Also from me today: www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/politics/alb...

@naheednenshi.bsky.social, leader of the Alberta NDP, condemns the government's use of the notwithstanding clause in Bill 9.

Alberta, in another release, confirms that sport orgs wanting provincial funding must adhere to disallowing transgender athletes from competing under the Fairness in Sport Act. This would also include major international competitions that would receive GOA funding to be held in Alberta.

NEW: Alberta's government has opted to use the notwithstanding clause to strip the Charter rights in sections 7 through 15 of transgender children, doctors, teachers, and sporting organizations as part of Bill 9.

Having lived in the Bow Valley and worked in BNP, there is a fair bit of irony about Albertas voting for the new "strong and free" plate with a photo of Moraine Lake given its a mecca for Australian workers and also people who wished they lived in B.C.

Flag-raising ban fails to get added to Calgary city council agenda as an urgent item. #yyc #calgary #yyccc buff.ly/DijV86d

A page out of John Green's Everything is Tuberculosis. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Geopolitics aside, there is a public misconception that a country's flag raised at Calgary City Hall replaces one of the Canadian national, provincial, or Indigenous flags. They do not. Courtesy request flags are flown on a separate 1pole at city hall. livewirecalgary.com/2025/11/13/u...

Calgary's new mayor @jeromyyyc.bsky.social signs on with the conservative and right wing sides of council for a motion to repeal up-zoning in Calgary. livewirecalgary.com/2025/11/13/m...

Calgary's living wage rises $2 to $26.50 for 2025. See where that stacks up against other Alberta municipalities in our latest on the increase. buff.ly/AmQXBpA

Due to the spread of measles in Canada, the Region of the Americas is no longer considered to be free from endemic measles transmission. Since March 2025, there have been 1,956 reported cases of measles in Alberta with the majority being between 5-17 years of age. www.paho.org/en/news/10-1...

With the government promising a new cabinet to examine classroom sizes and complexity and apparently also data come January of 2026, I think all of us data wonks are eagerly awaiting to see whether this is the actual raw classroom size data we saw up until 2019, or an aggregate report.

It's early days, according to the City of Calgary, but the province is sending a positive signal in helping secure future water resources. #yyc #calgary buff.ly/kRwtG1K

"Arresting is connecting." Calgary Police launch Operation Order in downtown Calgary, which saw officers gather enmasse to address what CPS Chief McLellan said was a sharp rise in violence and social disorder. Unhoused people disagreed with the tactic. livewirecalgary.com/2025/11/05/o...

10,812 AUPE nursing care members have voted to strike, with 219 against for a 98% vote towards labour action. Breakdown of percentages below:

Four of the province's criminal defence associations have condemned the Alberta Government's use of the notwithstanding clause. livewirecalgary.com/2025/11/05/c...

Residents near a proposed rowhouse in Parkdale are concerned the property owner is seeking a Direct Control R-CG land use as a workaround on the site's restrictive covenant. #yyc #calgary buff.ly/9zWT9ar

Not sure how to do this but dear councillors and new mayor the University is here to help you. We have an existing agreement to help you research anything you need evidence for. I mean not just me. Anyone. It’s called the Urban Alliance agreement

Two fires that are believed to have been the result of celebratory fireworks caused roughly $130,000 in damage, according to the Ward 5 city councillor. #yyc #calgary buff.ly/pjHCw3I

I haven't done a big data story in a while, so this one was a fun one. Everything you ever wanted to know, and probably more about where Calgarians supported the mayoral candidates during the elections at the polls. And yes, clickbait aside, the results WILL surprise you.

Today is the first time in the past four years where I haven't done a portrait of Calgary's mayor dressing up for Halloween before meeting with school kids at the City Hall classroom. My favourite from the series, with then Mayor Gondek dressing up as the queen bee.

Heads up #yycbike: 5 of my family’s bikes were stolen from our garage last night 😔. Please keep your eyes open for these bikes and please repost widely. 2019 Rocky Mountain Instinct 2006 Brodie Fury 2008 Trek 1500 2019 Trek Marlin 6 2022 Trek Marlin 5

Experimental treatment at the Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo using equine plasma saves the life of sandhill crane after an avian botulism outbreak at Lake Namaka. buff.ly/SFgEJ0B

Alberta NDP leader @naheednenshi.bsky.social on the use of the notwithstanding clause against fundamental Charter rights in Bill 2.

Now that Alberta's Bill 2 has passed, it operates notwithstanding to Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms for sections 2 and 7 through 15, and the entirety of the Alberta Bill of Rights and the Alberta Human Rights Act. Here's what it affects vis-à-vis the Charter (a thread):

The Alberta Government is ordering the public service back into offices starting in 2026, ending the hybrid work from home model that was introduced during the pandemic.

Alberta Theatre Projects' The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is shaping up to be the spookiest theatre production for Halloween, but Calgarians need to act fast if they want tickets to the late night performance on Oct. 31. buff.ly/4vhGfmu

Long lines at the polls a result of additional complexity and paperwork requirements for electors and election workers, despite more staff and 73 more polling stations for 2025 versus 2021. buff.ly/F7WzbdI

As of 4 p.m., some 89,900 Calgarians had voted at the polls on election day. Elections Calgary is reporting just 46% of polls were getting voters through 10 minutes or less, matching what has been reported all afternoon by Calgarians having slow waits at the polls.

Relevant section from the freedom of association paragraphs from the Government of Canada's Justice Department Charterpedia.

So far the biggest delay seems to be from the requirement for workers to check if someone is on the Permanent Electors Register, which was introduced by the UCP for the 2025 municipal elections. It doesn't actually require people to be on it to vote, but it does add a delay.

From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. today, so far 28,160 voters have cast their ballots on election day. Elections Calgary is saying that 70% of stations are taking less than 20 minutes per voter to cast a ballot, but that there is some delays at stations with wait times.

You can watch the real-time poll results from today's Calgary municipal and trustee election at @livewirecalgary.bsky.social's live election result tracker. livewirecalgary.com/2025/10/20/l...

Just a reminder: the only poll that matters today is the one you cast your ballot at.

Could be a regionally recognized reporter of some note in those photos. Also me.

It's study time in Ward 9, with seven candidates looking to fill a seat left vacant with the departure of former councillor Gian-Carlo Carra. #yyc #calgary #yycvote buff.ly/OLaOyZn

“When I find that there was no wrongful interference by any government official in the matters concerning this report, that only means that I found no evidence of such, but I am not in a position to make a final and absolute determination,” Wyant stated. www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/alber...

In response to the province's ask for teachers to go back to work without a deal but with the promise of future mediation, shadow minister for education Amanda Chapman was blunt: "I think it's time for the UCP to cut the crap." Full response below.

We hit the downtown Green Line hard today, with a couple of stories (along with Ward 7 - downtown) candidate survey responses. You don't want to miss it! #yyc #calgary #yycvote buff.ly/99mm1KT

UCP is announcing a new contest to choose a new license plate design all with the slogan "strong and free". But only because strong and free is in the national anthem and was said by King Charles during his speech from the throne. Not because it is the motto, song, donour club of the UCP. No sir.

This Senator Paula Simons column could have been written today. Except its from 2019. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

We had candidates rank 10 specific projects in terms of importance for Calgary to pursue in the upcoming term. Here's what they said: buff.ly/JbRIbRf #yyc #calgary #yycvote

my latest investigation for @consumerreports.org is based on months of reporting and 60+ lab tests of leading protein supplements we found that most protein powders and shakes have more lead in one serving than our experts say is safe to have in a day (🧵) www.consumerreports.org/lead/protein...

Prentice scraped a similar plan in 2014 that would have cost $15 million. "The priority of the government should not be designing licence plates. We have other priorities that are more pressing, that matter to Albertans," Prentice said at the time. calgaryherald.com/opinion/colu...

Bit of an odd result here, namely for the few parents who have school aged kids believing strongly that teachers get enough money to take care of their child (or children) all day, as it is.

Just 7 days to go until Oct. 20, voting day in Calgary.

The $87 billion climate cost has always been, very clearly so, a long-term cost to the economy and not a direct City of Calgary cost to taxpayers—in fact many stories, and admin have pointed this out. But some candidates keep using this number to campaign on. livewirecalgary.com/2025/10/13/8...

Thus far, a total of 10.7% of the electorate in Calgary has turned out to the advance polls. And in a change of pace for an advance polling period that has been less utilized than 2021, today set the record for Day 6 voting with 22,144 people casting their ballots.

No evidence that poll workers provided misinformation to voters says City of Calgary, despite claims from one trustee that electors were denied ballots in the Ward 3 & 4 race for public school trustee. buff.ly/GiglF1l

Albertans: if you're looking for a COVID vaccine, remember to check the list of medical conditions that qualify you for Phase I (it's more inclusive than I'd have guessed). You can book the appointments through MyAHSConnect.