Blake Richards, the MP for the Banff-Airdrie constituency, held a community consultation at Cochrane Toyota on Feb. 29.
The consultation focused on local priorities for residents of Cochrane as we near the release of the federal budget.
Attendees of the event were asked to answer questions centered around the importance of a balanced budget, solutions the federal government could employ to lower costs, ways the federal government could help the struggling energy sector, and what infrastructure needs are most important.
Many in attendance thought the $250-million advance given to the Alberta government by the federal government under the Fiscal Stabilization Program was not a solution for the struggling economy.
Another common theme of the evening was worry about the projected deficit the Liberal government is planning for.
“It was good to hear from other people in the group that they believe a balanced budget is needed – and if it’s a short-term unbalanced budget, it’s because there’s a goal that will then generate more than if you had nothing. So then long-term it would generate more jobs, more income, more taxes than if we just sat and did nothing,” said Cochrane Coun. Mary-Lou Davis-Eckmeier, who was in attendance that evening.
Davis-Eckmeier plans to bring up what was discussed at the consultation at the next town council meeting in her councillor’s report.
Discussing infrastructure needs within the town was also a topic Davis-Eckmeier was well-informed on.
“We all know that the roads, the intersections, and the railway bridges are key and we’ve been fighting for those as council so it’s good to know Blake’s open to that and on side with that and helping push up our agenda,” Davis-Eckmeier explained.
She said the responsibility also lies with residents to contact Cam Westhead, the MLA for the Banff-Cochrane constituency, with concerns about infrastructure so that he can push for it on a provincial level.
“Just because the economy has softened, our needs haven’t gone away.”
“What I heard today lines up with what I’ve heard already. I think people are obviously quite concerned with the economic situation we have and quite concerned about the amount of spending we’re seeing from the Liberal government already,” said Richards after sitting in with each group discussion.
“People are also concerned that we’re seeing a lot that’s being offered to deal with some of our issues. For example, making sure we get our products to market and instead we’re seeing more road blocks put up, and that’s a huge concern.”
Richards noted the work needing to be done on Highway 22 and Highway 1A is a major need of the town as well.
“I spend a lot of time in this community, and I certainly understand that,” he explained.
Despite the seemingly low turnout, the discussions had and the surveys filled out proved fruitful for the local MP who intends to take his findings back to Ottawa with him.
Richards held two more community consultations, one in Canmore and one in Airdrie, to ensure diversity of feedback from the constituency.
The federal budget will be released March 22. It is anticipated the budget will run a deficit of approximately $18.4 billion.
The Government of Canada pre-budget consultations, which took place online and in-person, concluded at midnight Feb. 23.
Those who wish to fill out an online survey in order to provide feedback about budget concerns to Richards can visit his website blakerichards.ca and use the link “Pre-Budget Survey.” These must be completed within the next couple weeks.
