One thing that I was hoping @RachelNotley would have time to address in the debate was the impact that oil prices had on the budgets and deficits put up by the NDP and the UCP. The NDP had to work with a shoestring budget. The UCP just got lucky. 1/4 #ableg
Under the UCP, we're still massively dependent on O&G royalty & tax revenue rollercoaster, as shown last year by @trevortombe.
Side note: look at the deficit in the UCP's first year, *pre-pandemic*, despite slashing public services. It was LARGER than all the NDP deficits 🤯! 2/4
So even though Premier Smith and the UCP keep telling us that we'll have a surplus this year due to their fiscal acumen, the reality is that it's mostly due to the fact that GLOBAL oil prices shot way up, largely due to the Ukraine-Russia war. Again, receipts by Dr. Tombe. 3/4
So for my many friends posting "Thank oil and gas for being able to survive these temperatures:" I don't disagree with you, BUT -- it's no longer the only way. We are nice and cozy here at -40 with NO gas line to the house. This is thanks to a few things: 1/n #ableg#cdnpoli
1) great insulation: offset double stud walls for a total of 10" of thickness, insulated with dense-packed cellulose 2) an airtight building envelope rated at 0.6 air changes/hour 3) a @DettsonHVAC air-source heat pump coupled to backup electric furnace for very cold days 2/n
4) Venmar heat-recovery ventilator, which brings fresh air in, while recovering most of the heat from exhaust air 5) air-source heat pump hot water tank, that extracts heat from basement air and transfers it to the water 6) solar PV (optional) 7) triple-paned windows
3/n