Earlier this month, Rachel Notley, the former premier of Alberta, announced her decision to step down from the leadership of the NDP as soon as her successor is chosen by party members. That date has now been set for June 22 2024.The timing of Notley’s resignation was ironic — coming as Alberta emerged from a particularly gruesome deep freeze that had fallen upon Alberta.The extreme cold snap forced renewable electricity generation to completely shut down, putting the provinces’ entire electricity grid at risk and prompting the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) to issue emergency alerts, urging residents of Alberta to minimize their electricity consumption to prevent the occurrence of rolling blackouts.Keep in mind Alberta’s dramatic shift away from reliable sources of electricity — coal and natural gas — was a hallmark of Notley’s controversial term as premier from 2015 to 2019.During its single term in office, the Notley government promoted wind and solar power energy not just as contemporary solutions, but as legacy policies that would propel the province into a more sustainable and forward-thinking energy era. The green revolution undertaken by the NDP government brought them in line with the policy agenda of the federal Liberal government, also elected in 2015.So, for four years the NDP acted as a doormat for federal-policy-after-federal-policy designed to eliminate oil and gas jobs, decimate Alberta’s economy, and reduce our ability to keep the heat on during the cold winter months.Now, two election losses later, Rachel Notley is taking her “walk in the snow” as the economic costs of these disastrous energy policies become evident.During her premiership, Notley worked hand-in-hand with the Trudeau government to dismantle Alberta’s energy industry.The NDP-Liberal partnership was marked by one of the most devastating recessions in Alberta’s history and four years after her surprise election victory, the voters sent Notley and the Alberta NDP to the opposition benches with a landslide UCP victory in 2019. These days the political environment is different.Alberta has a new government, one elected to defend Alberta’s interests against hostile federal government policies that encroach on provincial jurisdiction and will have disastrous consequences for our economy.The 2023 Alberta general election made it clear that, when it comes to our economy, Albertans were not willing to risk another NDP-Liberal alliance.The NDP's 2023 loss and Notley's resignation perhaps mark a political paradigm shift.Policies designed to make affordable energy sources unaffordable have become more and more unpopular with the electorate.Why?Because energy is the industry that powers every industry. If you make energy more expensive, you make everything more expensive. This theory applies to virtually every policy the Notley-Trudeau alliance was pushing, from the carbon tax to the tanker bans, 'Just Transition,' Clean Electricity Regulations and the electric vehicle mandate.The federal Liberals may be on the verge of learning the same lesson.Notley’s resignation is the beginning of the end of an era.The NDP are now forced to make a decision — ride with the climate enthusiasts who have been driving their policy decisions or move the party into the mainstream, which understands the vitality of energy as a utility in our everyday lives.There is one thing that is certain — this race will be an interesting one to watch!
Earlier this month, Rachel Notley, the former premier of Alberta, announced her decision to step down from the leadership of the NDP as soon as her successor is chosen by party members. That date has now been set for June 22 2024.The timing of Notley’s resignation was ironic — coming as Alberta emerged from a particularly gruesome deep freeze that had fallen upon Alberta.The extreme cold snap forced renewable electricity generation to completely shut down, putting the provinces’ entire electricity grid at risk and prompting the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) to issue emergency alerts, urging residents of Alberta to minimize their electricity consumption to prevent the occurrence of rolling blackouts.Keep in mind Alberta’s dramatic shift away from reliable sources of electricity — coal and natural gas — was a hallmark of Notley’s controversial term as premier from 2015 to 2019.During its single term in office, the Notley government promoted wind and solar power energy not just as contemporary solutions, but as legacy policies that would propel the province into a more sustainable and forward-thinking energy era. The green revolution undertaken by the NDP government brought them in line with the policy agenda of the federal Liberal government, also elected in 2015.So, for four years the NDP acted as a doormat for federal-policy-after-federal-policy designed to eliminate oil and gas jobs, decimate Alberta’s economy, and reduce our ability to keep the heat on during the cold winter months.Now, two election losses later, Rachel Notley is taking her “walk in the snow” as the economic costs of these disastrous energy policies become evident.During her premiership, Notley worked hand-in-hand with the Trudeau government to dismantle Alberta’s energy industry.The NDP-Liberal partnership was marked by one of the most devastating recessions in Alberta’s history and four years after her surprise election victory, the voters sent Notley and the Alberta NDP to the opposition benches with a landslide UCP victory in 2019. These days the political environment is different.Alberta has a new government, one elected to defend Alberta’s interests against hostile federal government policies that encroach on provincial jurisdiction and will have disastrous consequences for our economy.The 2023 Alberta general election made it clear that, when it comes to our economy, Albertans were not willing to risk another NDP-Liberal alliance.The NDP's 2023 loss and Notley's resignation perhaps mark a political paradigm shift.Policies designed to make affordable energy sources unaffordable have become more and more unpopular with the electorate.Why?Because energy is the industry that powers every industry. If you make energy more expensive, you make everything more expensive. This theory applies to virtually every policy the Notley-Trudeau alliance was pushing, from the carbon tax to the tanker bans, 'Just Transition,' Clean Electricity Regulations and the electric vehicle mandate.The federal Liberals may be on the verge of learning the same lesson.Notley’s resignation is the beginning of the end of an era.The NDP are now forced to make a decision — ride with the climate enthusiasts who have been driving their policy decisions or move the party into the mainstream, which understands the vitality of energy as a utility in our everyday lives.There is one thing that is certain — this race will be an interesting one to watch!
