Franklin D. Roosevelt had his ‘100 days of Change.’.When he was elected in 1933 Roosevelt passed 77 laws in his first 100 days in office to impose his New Deal to counteract the effects of the Great Depression..For Premier Danielle Smith, barely 30 days in after being elected on May 29, there’s only 60 more to go..Though she hasn’t kept up with FDR’s blistering pace, the next 60 days promises to be no less ambitious, filled with meetings and consultations — and flipping pancakes — while holding serious discussions with the prime minister and premiers specifically with respect to the climate change and energy files..“Lots of Stampede parties are going to be in my immediate future,” she quipped following an appearance at the Calgary Chamber of Commerce on Thursday..“But on the policy side, the work is going to be focussed on our relationship with the federal government … addressing some of those thorny issues I’ve spoken about.”.High on that list are the federal government’s proposed emissions caps, electricity regulations, and working with British Columbia to facilitate LNG exports off the West Coast..She’ll meet with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on July 7 when he comes to Calgary for the Stampede. Smith said there will only be three items up for discussion at the meeting: “Energy, energy and energy.”.From there she’ll travel to Winnipeg for the Council of the Federation meeting of the premiers from July 10-12. There, she intends to further advance discussions with the premiers on Article 6 of the Paris climate accord, which governments claim carbon credits for reducing emissions off Canada’s shores..Smith was in Whistler, BC last week for the Western premier’s meetings where she said she had positive discussions with Premier David Eby to advance liquefied natural gas exports to Asia, an idea they want to push on Ottawa. If all proposed projects move forward, she said they could potentially add up to reductions of 80 megatonnes per year — about 15% — of Canada’s entire greenhouse gas emissions. .Smith also held high level discussions with Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson and Intergovernmental Affairs boss Dominic LeBlanc where she said they made progress on energy issues while drawing her “hard lines in the sand.”.Specifically she said the Sovereignty Act has “reset“ the relationship with Ottawa on more favourable terms and they seem more willing to listen on issues like the Just Transition act..”I told them no more sticks until we get some carrots,” she said. “We got their attention.”.Given that the Council of the Federation meeting is hosted by Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson, a proposed memorandum of understanding between Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba to construct a utility corridor to the Hudson’s Bay is also likely to figure high on the agenda..From there, Smith said she plans to finish the ‘silly season’ by kicking back and taking in Alberta’s summer festivals before the Legislature reconvenes in the fall..“It is actually going to be a summer of tour because I want to make sure I’m out to all our rural ridings, there’s lot of parades and festivals and this is a great time to be in touch with people and flipping pancakes,” she said.
