Pincher Creek Candidates Forum

Chris Davis, Pincher Creek Voice

A forum including the participation of three of the Livingstone- Macleod constituency candidates in the upcoming Provincial election was held at the Heritage Inn, Pincher Creek on Wednesday evening, April 18.  Participating candidates included Larry Ashmore of the Evergreen Party, Evan Berger of the Progressive Conservative Party, and Matthew Halton of the New Democratic Party.

The event was hosted by the Pincher Creek & District Chamber of Commerce and the Southwest Alberta Sustainable Community Initiative (SASCI).  Chamber of Commerce President James Van Leeuwen made the opening and closing remarks, performed timekeeper duty, and asked a couple of questions during the event.  David Green acted as moderator.

Evan Berger, Matthew Halton, and Larry Ashmore at the
Pincher Creek candidates forum
C. Davis photos

Although all three candidates had appeared previously at the Cowley forum hosted by the Livingstone Landowners Group the week before, the two forums were fairly different in terms of the kinds of questions being asked and, obviously, the number of participants.  Land issues were again a topic of query,  but not as predominantly as they were at the Cowley forum, for instance. Due to the fewer number of candidates present, the forum moved along at a somewhat quicker pace.

Larry Ashmore

In his opening remarks EverGreen candidate and party leader Larry Ashmore said the party was based on six principles, including ecological wisdom, sustainability, non-violence, respect for diversity, social justice, and participatory democracy.  "This (participatory democracy) is my big issue, being involved in the Green movement, and this involves democratic reform," he said.    

Evan Berger

Incumbent Evan Berger, PC, spoke frequently about the South Saskatchewan Regional land-use Plan, which he worked on as Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development under Alison Redford, a position he hopes to reassume should he regain his seat. Over the past 4 years I've been particularly focused and involved in something that affects each and every one of us every day," he said.  "Our air, land, and water are our most important natural resources, and I believe we need to make sure we have a plan in place so that same quality of life we enjoy today will be here for future generations."

Matthew Halton

NDP candidate Matthew Halton began by acknowledging the presence of Garth Turcott, who is now the President of the Pincher Creek Co-op board. Turcott was the first Alberta NDP candidate to win a seat in the legislature, back in 1966, representing the Pincher Creek-Crowsnest riding.  "I'm concerned about publicly delivered and publicly funded health care," Halton said. He also raised revenue sharing, party fundraising, objectivity, land-use policy that includes public consultation, and environmental sustainability. "While our economy depends heavily on natural resource extraction, this does not need to be done at the expense of some of our most sensitive wildlands," he said.

After the introductory speeches were concluded, the floor was opened to questions from the crowd.  Topics the candidates were asked to address included priorities, oil royalties, how keep doctors in rural Alberta, health care privatization, the Canada Pension Plan, seniors issues, democratic reform, land use issues, "green" power concerns, and education funding.

Video: Toni Lucas