“We cannot continue on hearing stories of people dying in the back of ambulances or waiting for nine hours in an ambulance or waiting 29 hours on a hospital floor,” Danielle Smith told the CBC, and vowed to fix Alberta's health care within 90 days. Oh, not in this article. In 2022. 1164 days ago.

Former AHS director alleges he was under surveillance, harassed, because he is a potential witness in the lawsuit tied to Alberta's health care procurement controversy, according to court docs Plus lots more --> www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic... By @tuthanhha.bsky.social

Danielle Smith's efforts to marginalize and restrict access to the COVID-19 vaccine have paid off: a mere 6.8% of the province got their shots this year, down from last year's already embarrassing rate of 14%.

Grassy Mountain (version 1) is officially dead. A long time coming. #ableg #abpoli @cpawssab.bsky.social @albertawilderness.bsky.social @cpawsnab.bsky.social

The province receives recommendations from panels all the time, and premier & gov't take or leave ideas as they please. But this is different. This panel was *chaired* by Premier Danielle Smith. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

If you 'enjoyed' our recent two podcasts about the ANDP-Leap conflict and the federal NDP's leadership race, you're going to 'love' digging into the federal party's just-released 2025 campaign post-mortem.

You can ask basically anyone doing investigative journalism in Alberta at this point and hear a story like this. Getting any information out of the government as a journalist here is becoming very difficult.

Boissonnault's detractor and former business partner didn't even file a statement of defence. At $450,000 that's one expensive oopsy-doopsy.

Beyond the Lecture Hall is a terrific podcast hosted by @robertalexier.bsky.social & Lee Easton. Earlier this month they facilitated a discussion on the UCP's use of the notwithstanding clause with @profsmithsask.bsky.social, Victoria Bucholtz & me. Listen in at: open.spotify.com/episode/5oCI...

The Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL) announced today that the Mount Royal Faculty Association (MRFA) is now an AFL affiliate. MRFA represents 800 unionized workers on and around the Mount Royal campus.

COVID is still here—the province reports it has killed 64 Albertans this year—and the flu this season is awful too. Mask up. Get your shots.

A $25,000 fee here is obscene. The Citizens Initiative Act has been amended into a millionaire's initiative act.

Big Lakes County is out $9.3 after oil and gas company Razor Energy walked out on millions in unpaid property taxes.

Alberta country music star Corb Lund says the citizens petition initiative he had filed against coal mining in the Rocky Mountains has been retroactively killed by Alberta’s new legislation:

Advocacy groups apply to keep court case against Alberta trans laws alive Egale and Skipping Stone say they plan to argue Alberta has effectively developed a criminal law — something outside of its jurisdiction. News from me this afternoon: www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/prairies_bc/...

Landmark Alberta legislature sitting raises questions on politicians and rule of law From me today after Alberta’s assembly got out of dodge for the holidays: www.thecanadianpressnews.ca/health/landm...

"Public reporting was a major commitment in Smith's pledge to fix the health system, but Wylie's report says the reports that stemmed from that pledge were inconsistent and didn't always follow up on promised metrics."

An update from our host, Nate Pike on the $6 million lawsuit against the show and him by the man at the center of the “corrupt care” controversy. #abpoli #ableg #cdnpoli

Can we trust government numbers on health wait times? Not entirely. Fascinating info in auditor general's latest report. Column. calgaryherald.com/opinion/colu... #ableg #abhealth #abpoli #abgov #cdnpoli #yyc #yeg

The commission is accepting written responses to the interim report until December 19, 2025 and will begin a new round of public hearings in January 2026.

But there IS a rule stating that one recall petition is approved against an MLA and it fails, nobody can try again to recall that member until after the next election. So a do-nothing recall campaign can serve as a catch-and-kill for an MLA's supporter.

Important constitutional analysis of UCP government’s forced abstinence legislation, by AB Civil Liberties Research Centre at UofC. It simply does not hold up. www.lawnow.org/albertas-com...

Independent MLA Peter Guthrie assumes Alberta Party leadership

As Shepherd argues that Bill 13 and the anti-DEI efforts of the UCP in general will have negative consequences for Black professionals in Alberta, UCP MLA Tany Yao tries to shut down debate by accusing Shepherd of calling the government racist.

Quite the caper down in Lethbridge: the Nate Neudorf recall campaign isn't circulating its petition, and petition leader is ghosting would-be canvassers. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/... by me

Edmonton police officer reprimanded for inappropriate texts to sexual assault complainant Here’s a written version of my TV story from last week with a bit more context. #yeg #Alberta edmonton.citynews.ca/2025/12/08/e...

Some people in Lethbridge who want to recall their MLA are now worried the petition against him is actually designed to *protect* the MLA from being recalled. Alberta's recall rules say that once a petition is launched and fails, no subsequent petitions can be launched. Via @markusoff.bsky.social:

What is going on here to make Rick bell apparently think that permanent bike lanes are reinstalled every spring?

The citizen initiative petition filed by Corb Lund, which calls on the Government of Alberta to "prohibit by law any and all new coal mining activities, including new approvals and permits, within the Eastern Slopes of the Rocky Mountains," has been approved by Elections Alberta.

Organizers of a recall petition in Lethbridge-East were beaten to the punch by another campaign, which filed the paperwork before them. Now they're raising concerns that that other campaign may be deliberately trying to stall out the recall process.

In addition to donating to, or subscribing to, news organizations that are investigating the backsliding, if you're a subject expert, respond to interview requests from journalists who work for news organizations, however small, that are producing political accountability journalism.

Re-upping this as daily temps are set to plunge in Edmonton. Zero frostbite amputations is an achievable goal we all can work towards. City Council and the Government of Alberta can lead here by overhauling their winter emergency response efforts #yegcc #ableg edmontonjournal.com/opinion/colu...

SCOOP: Elections Alberta investigated Sam Mraiche over allegations he made illegal political donations in 2023 www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic... w @tomcardoso.bsky.social

Quite the scathing 'epilogue' that Justice Feasby added to his decision, in response to legislation tabled by Alberta's UCP government just yesterday:

UPDATE: CPS has released two bodyworn camera files. The files cover before & after my assault by baton, shield & fist, alleged choking & arrest. They are heavily redacted by blurring + audio cut, but one shows a shield strike. CPS retained $125 for them. ⬇️ drugdatadecoded.ca/calgary-poli...

Troy Forester, the officer alleged to have sent these inappropriate texts, may be familiar to you for other reasons: vice-president of the Edmonton Police Association; demoted in 2014 for sexual conduct towards a recruit; fined $22,000 in 2006 for assaulting a man at a traffic check-stop.

OK this might be a fool's errand but last night I started a #yyccc budget tracker. Tracking amendments, what they're about, who voted how—so this info can be in one place in an easy-to-digest format. Feedback welcome. Started with transit amendments. Will add housing & others.

Alberta government awarded PR firm sole-source $200K contract to run education campaign to sway public opinion during teachers' battle www.townandcountrytoday.com/beyond-local...

GIving cabinet authority over petitions and referendums will turn them into weapons that can only be used by UCP supporters against UCP enemies.

BREAKING: Alberta Health Services CEO who took over after a controversial firing in January is now himself out. AHS confirms Andre Tremblay on leave. Minister Matt Jones has appointed a new CEO and chair. Tremblay was named CEO after Athana Mentzelopoulos was fired earlier this year.

Interim CEO and AHS chair is Erin O'Neill, a senior VP at AHS who was previously an assistant deputy minister at the Alberta Health ministry, when Tremblay was deputy minister. (Oops, said Heather before, but it’s Erin — not the author)

On the one hand Thomas Lukaszuk was wise to file this only as a policy petition and not a referendum petition—having signed up only 13.6% of eligible voters, it would have failed on the referendum track. The downside is that as a policy and not a referendum petition, the UCP could easily kill this.

Reminder that Edmonton AND Calgary police used public resources to hold town halls + other events to steer business communities & other stakeholders in favour of UCP drug policy. The specified timeline for this campaign was “before the May 2023 election.” drugdatadecoded.ca/alberta-poli...

Did Adriana Lagrange lie to cover up connections with the "Corrupt Care" scandal and recovery Alberta? Because back in March she was asked if Judge Wyants report would look into those concerns, and she said he would. But he said he wasn't allowed to... #abpoli #ableg #cdnpoli

In a follow-up to last month's interview with Shannon Phillips about the 2016 convention battle over the LEAP manifesto, this episode we chat with someone from the LEAP camp—Breach Media managing editor & Avi Lewis advisor Martin Lukacs.

News: Edmonton's police chief is seeking to fire a detective who leaked case files to the media about Abdullah Shah and claimed members of the EPS brass had a "close knit" relationship with the notorious (now dead) landlord. edmontonjournal.com/news/crime/e...

Today‘s column is about the reaction to the UCP board voting to quash an Alberta separatism debate at the party’s AGM and how Danielle Smith's pipeline deal with Mark Carney could get more jeers than cheers at the biggest political gathering of the year. daveberta.substack.com/p/quashing-a...

UCP AGM is off to a great start

Between April 1, 2024, and March 31, 2025,  the advocate’s office recorded 60 youth deaths and nine serious injuries among young people who had received child intervention services within the two years preceding their death. apple.news/AyqEPphBWQAu...

Danielle Smith doesn’t need a pipeline to Prince Rupert – she just needs Mark Carney to promise she can have one. albertapolitics.ca/2025/11/dani...