The Redford government's decision to spend more than $300,000 on a new mail-out brochure to more than a million Alberta households is a gross misuse of taxpayers' money, say local Wildrose MLAs.
Bruce Rowe, MLA for Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills, called the pamphlet nothing more than government propaganda.
“I think it is a total waste of money and nothing more than PC propaganda,” said Rowe. “They've been hit hard in just about every area you can think of and I think it is a ploy to get their good word out, not ours.
“Those $320,000 would have kept a lot of the front-line health-care workers who are being laid off in cuts. That could have kept jobs in Alberta.
“This already has backfired on them. People are resoundingly against it.”
The eight-page “Report To Taxpayers” includes a message from Premier Alison Redford, in which she defends the 2013 budget. An advanced copy was obtained by the Gazette from the government of Alberta website.
“This report gives you the facts about our budget and outlines your government's long-term plan to keep building Alberta. After all, the decisions we make today will set our province up for a stronger tomorrow,” said Redford.
“Despite a $6.2-billion hit to our revenues this year because of the Bitumen Bubble – where Albertans are not getting the price we would for our resources – I'm proud that we were able to continue to deliver on the priorities Alberta's families told us are most important.”
Sundre-area Wildrose MLA Joe Anglin echoed Rowe's comments, calling the brochure an inappropriate use of tax money.
“I know this is propaganda,” said Anglin. “The government didn't run on putting this province back into debt and the pamphlet doesn't say anything about the billions and billions of dollars it plans to run up over the next three years.
“They get beaten up in the press for what they presented as a budget so they put out this pamphlet to distort the lines between what is government and what is party. They used the (PC) party colours, spending more than $300,000 and when you read the pamphlet they don't even put out all the facts.”
Like the Wildrose official Opposition, the Liberal and NDP opposition parties have also come out against the brochure.
“That money would be better spent for seniors, for education, for the vulnerable,” said Liberal Leader Raj Sherman.
NDP Leader Brian Mason said, “This has a lot to do with the premier's campaign, which is now in full swing, to win the leadership review in November.”
The Mountain View County reeve says he would hope all levels of government would conduct information sharing with constituents in a cost-effective way.
“You have to get the information out and not everybody has access to the Internet,” said Beattie. “We sent out a notice with our tax notices that tries to explain the basics of the budget and we put information in the Gazette every week to try to explain our points of view.
“There is a communication aspect that has to be done and it's a question of how it is presented and if it's presented fairly. As a government you have a responsibility to report to your ratepayers and so I guess the question is, how do you do that without being accused of doing propaganda.
“I think they would be criticized if they didn't provide information. We want to have information from the government, and it costs money to do those things.”
The province says the brochure will be delivered by Canada Post to 1.2 million Alberta households at a cost of 29 cents per home.
