When Alberta Premier Alison Redford recently told her party's 2012 convention that her government is prepared to see the province borrow to pay for key infrastructure projects it shouldn't have come as a big surprise to anyone.
Having won yet another large majority in the spring election, the Redford Tories have more than enough seats in the legislature to move forward with any and all fiscal plans they wish, including piling up just about all the debt they like.
“If everything we do right now is fully funded with cash in the bank, then we are never going to build anything more in this province,” said Premier Redford.
Finance Minister Doug Horner added: “The decision about what we build, where we build and how we build it shouldn't be based on how much money we've got in the bank.”
Not surprisingly, the official Opposition Wildrose Party has been quick to call any debt plans by the government an election promise betrayal.
“They (Redford Tories) are like billionaire brats who inherit their money from mom and dad, blow through 80 per cent and say, look we still have some money to spend and aren't we doing a good job,” said Wildrose finance critic Rob Anderson.
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation says the Redford PCs don't have a public mandate to take on government debt – and that had Alison Redford said so during the spring election she would have lost the election.
Of course claims that the Tories are somehow outside their authority to take on more debt isn't accurate. A government with a comfortable majority certainly has the authority and the ability to take on debt if and whenever it decides to do so.
With that in mind, the big question now is not whether the Redford Tories can take on new debt, but rather where they will spend the money.
Hopefully Premier Redford in her wisdom will see her way clear to spend some of the new cash on much-needed infrastructure projects in West Central Alberta, including for the replacement of the QEII and Highway 27 intersection, which has rightly been called one of the most dangerous intersections in Alberta.
And of course there are many other infrastructure needs in the region, including for flood protection and other road construction.
Like it or not, the Redford government can borrow billions of dollars if it so chooses and can spend that money almost any way it likes.
Hopefully, some of the money will find its way into West Central Alberta – despite the fact there are only Wildrose MLAs in the region's legislative seats.
