Thread by @RachelNotley

The UCP government has passed Budget 2021.

It fails to deliver a plan to create jobs, diversify Alberta’s economy, or specify how it will spend billions of dollars in contingency funding.

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#ableg #abpoli #alberta #ab #abbudget2021 #budget #abbudget #ucp #abeconomy

Budget 2021’s signature Alberta Jobs Now strategy commits the government to getting $62 million out the door in the next four business days, but the program has yet to be launched.

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And while the budget promises “sector strategies,” they remain under construction with no estimate for additional job creation.

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Budget 2021 is a blueprint for failure.

The budget also fails to provide a credible plan to diversify Alberta’s economy, instead relying on the UCP’s corporate tax handout and a so-called recovery plan from almost a year ago.

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Instead, the budget represents a real-world cut of $690 million, or 22.6 per cent, in direct support to post-secondary institutions, along with 1,450 full-time equivalents, when compared to the previous government.

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A recent study found that the University of Calgary contributes $16.5 billion in economic activity to Alberta's economy annually and is a major driver of innovation and long-term job creation.

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The budget also proposes mass layoffs in the public sector, including 11,000 frontline healthcare workers and 750 nurses once the pandemic is over.

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It’s clear that Kenney is out of ideas, and is doubling down on his failed economic strategy that saw Alberta lose 50,000 jobs pre-pandemic.

We need a Premier with a vision for Alberta's future economy.

We need a Premier with an actual plan to create jobs and diversify.

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