Coffee and conversation with Alberta Party leader Greg Clark

Alberta Party leader Greg Clark
T. Lucas photo

Chris Davis

Alberta Party leader Greg Clark was in Pincher Creek on Thursday August 21.  He held a meet-and-greet at the Ranchland Mall in the morning, and was also a guest at the weekly Pincher Creek Rotary Club meeting.  The small group that attended the meet-and-greet peppered Clark with questions and ideas.  The following interview with him was conducted near the end of the event, and is presented in a question and answer format.

Background*

Alberta born and raised, Greg Clark graduated from the University of Victoria in 1993 with a degree in Political Science, minoring in Sociology. He then worked in the Alberta Legislature for Leader of the Official Opposition Laurence Decore.  He then left politics, earned an MBA, and in 2006 co-founded an Information Technology consulting firm C3 Associates. Clark was the Alberta Party candidate in Calgary-Elbow for the 2012 Alberta general election, placing 5th.  Former Progressive Conservative Party leader Alison Redford won that seat by a significant margin. In 2013 Clark sold his share of C3 to his partners and entered politics full time.  At the Alberta Party Annual General Meeting held on September 21, 2013 Clark won the leadership of the party with 87% of the 337 votes cast.

Q: Why do we need a change in Alberta?

Greg Clark: "I think we're seeing the result of 43 years of the same government. We see the entrenchment, the entitlement, the consequences from this sense that the PC Party owns the government of Alberta. There could be nothing further from the truth. The people of Alberta own the government of Alberta, and there's a disconnection between how communities and the way that we treat one another in our communities and the way that our provincial government behaves. And the only conclusion I can draw is that the focus is on ensuring the PC dynasty continues, as opposed to having a vision."

Q: So what's the vision for the Alberta Party?

Greg Clark: "The vision is long-term, sustainable prosperity.  I would say shared prosperity, where there are a lot of people in this province who are not participating in the boom-time economy that we're living in. You know, you're talking to folks - just here in the mall - how difficult it is to hire someone to work on the farm. You just can't pay them enough, you know they're going to go work on the oil patch and so it's having a real impact on rural communities. I think what Albertans expect is a government that fits their values, and those values are integrity, responsibility, being responsible with our money, and encouraging people and supporting them to be responsible for their own well-being and their own families as well. The government has a role to play in that as well. And then.. caring for one another."

"Albertans have always looked out for our neighbours, that's who we are, and we rely on the government to help facilitate that. And so we need a government that genuinely cares about us, and a government that genuinely cares about Albertans would build enough long-term care spaces for seniors. We haven't built enough in Alberta and we haven't for 10 years. We'd build enough schools - we haven't built enough schools in this province, we just simply haven't, we're behind the curve. We have an infrastructure crisis in this province and we have a massive, massive infrastructure deficit all around the province. And I think 'Where?  If we can't do this in Alberta, then where can we do this?"

"We were talking earlier.. the world around Alberta, the world outside of Alberta is changing, very quickly. We inside Alberta, our government is not changing as quickly. And the world is I think starting to pass us by, we have to be very careful. And it might not have an impact over the next 5 or 10 years but what happens long-term? What's the long-term story here for our children? What is the legacy that we're leaving behind? I think that's a fair question and I don't think that's a question that our government can answer right now. My answer to that question is, I think we need to focus on strong environmental regulation, especially in oil and gas, as a way of ensuring our continued economic prosperity within oil and gas."

" I've talked with lots of people within the industry; there are a lot of people within the oil and gas industry who want stronger environmental regulation, because they realized that our current regulations are actually holding us back. They hold us back because if we look at the perception the rest of Canada and the rest of the world has of Alberta, it's not always a positive perception. And that almost unfortunately isn't necessarily even reflecting reality. There are a lot of, in fact the vast majority of producers in the energy industry, are responsible producers. They genuinely care about the environment, they care about the people who work for them, they care about the communities they operate in. That's something they experience in most of their companies."

Q: How do we keep our politicians to task?

Greg Clark: "I think that's a philosophical question about human natures, I think the Auditor General answered it perfectly, 'It's much better to have a backbone of principal than rely on a course of rules'."

"We need to elect a government of principle. People that we can trust to do the right thing. And if I can point out.. Jim Prentice is giving out free PC memberships... it may be technically within the bounds of the rules to do so, does that feel right?  Does that feel ethical?  I don't want someone running the provincial government who will push to the very edge of the law, I want someone who does the right thing because it's the right thing to do. And I think that's what Albertans expect from their government."

Q: Do we need less legislation then?

"We need the rules, but we also need equally enforced, and rigidly enforced rules because if I drive back to Calgary at 150km/h and the RCMP pulls me over and says 'Please try harder next time, just don't do it again,' versus giving me a big speeding ticket..."

"(Enforced rules) curb behaviour in the future, cause that's why we have rules, that's human nature. So absolutely we need better environmental regulation, I think the industry welcomes better environmental regulation, and frankly whether they welcome it or not it's the right thing to do. We need it. We have to do it. Because, primarily it's the right thing to do but also because that will show to the world that Alberta is serious about environmental regulation."

Q: The world's impression of us matters because...?

Greg Clark: "Because we need access to market for our core products. If we produce oil and no one wants to buy it, then that'll have a huge impact on our economy."

"Do we get full value for it?  If it costs us money then to ship it by rail or another method, then that's money that Albertans don't take and (they are the) owners of this resource. So we trust, we are the owners of a resource. We've hired the Government of Alberta to be our landlord, to lease it out, to produce it, and we as citizens, as owners of this resource, rely on the government to make sure we get our fair share, get our fair take."

Q: Are we getting our fair share?

"On the oil sands side I think once those projects reach payout, I think yes, I think we are, royalties are scaled to oil prices. We are currently taking the risk, as the owner of the resource, of cost overruns in the oil sands. There's only been two projects in the history of the oil sands that have come in on-time and on-budget. Every other project goes overdue. So as you probably know, oil sands royalties have an incentive to allow companies to cover their initial capital expenditure at a low rate between something like 3 and 9%, depending on the cost of a barrel of oil. But that includes the CEO's bonus, that includes any cost overrun, so if the assumption is, if the plan goes ahead as a five billion project but it ends up costing 7, 8, 12 billion, the higher royalties don't kick in until they fund back the full cost of the project, including whatever bonuses, whatever costs. So I think we need tighter control of auditing what is exactly included in these costs, and I also think we need to really think hard about whether we approve a certain capital spend and the higher royalties kick in beyond that cost irrespective of the cost overruns. And that will certainly ensure, provide the additional incentive, to those producers to make sure they stay within the bounds."

Renewable energy

"One thing we haven't really talked about is renewable energy."

"I think we need to accelerate the end of life of coal-fired power in Alberta. 40 years is far too long."

"Coal fired power in Alberta creates almost as much carbon emission as oil sands."

"The electricity sector as a whole is approximately 40% of Alberta's carbon emissions and the oil sands is... energy production is approximately 40% as well. So I think that if Alberta wants to show the world that we're serious about reducing our carbon footprint, then I think we need to find ways of doing that. Replacing coal-fired power incrementally (with) renewable energy I think is a really good start."

"The fact that Alberta is the only province in Canada that does not have a renewable energy strategy is absolutely shameful. Why can't we? We have some of the best wind resources in the entire country, if not the very best, some of if not the very best solar resources in the whole country. Why not Alberta? Why can't we do that here?  We should, we should be doing that.  And I'd like to see Alberta move toward a renewable energy standard, where a certain percentage of our electricity must be generated from renewable sources.  What those sources are is entirely up to the producers."

"You know, it's a complete lack of imagination on the part of the Alberta government, and the lack of bravery and the lack of willingness to take a bit of risk, to say 'Based on our principals, it's important that we do these things, and it may not make everyone happy and there may be some entrenched interests who say, some big corporate interests who say, 'We don't like this very much', but you know what? Too bad. Because it's important for all of Albertans and it's important because we need to think about what we're leaving behind here for the next generation, what kind of road are we leaving behind? We have these opportunities. Now with all of that said, I am incredibly optimistic about the future of our province. There's nothing we can't do in Alberta."

The Alberta advantage

Clark explained that his wife was from overseas and originally wanted to stay in Alberta for five years.  "After two she said 'I'm not going anywhere this place is amazing'. She said 'It doesn't matter where I'm from, it doesn't matter about my accent, it doesn't matter what school I went to, if I have a good idea, I take it forward and we make it happen.' It's that entrepreneurial spirit. She works in health care and even in health care that spirit, or at least at the time, existed."

"Now I think that's happening less, I think it's becoming more bureaucratic and really entrenched, and that needs to change as well. But there's not a problem we can't solve in Alberta. We have the brain power, we have the entrepreneurial spirit. I think that is actually a very positive thing for Alberta and I think we just need a government that thinks along with us, and has that same mindset."

Q: How do we trust a government we've never had?

Greg Clark: "Actions speak louder than words. I'm doing what I can to show Albertans what an Alberta Party government would look like, how would it operate, to, on my own personal level, show you what it would mean for Greg Clark to be Premier. I quit my job a year ago to do this, to take on leadership of the Alberta Party, and I make no money doing this. Well that's not true, I get $1000 a month in lieu of expenses. And I've put nearly 50k on my vehicle in the last not-quite-a-year."

"I believe it's a very important time in Alberta history, that this is something I can do to contribute to my community, and I'm not doing it to get ahead personally, I'm doing it because I feel that someone has to take a lead, and I feel I can do that. And in doing that, I am attracting,we are attracting, in the Alberta party, other people who are committed to public service above self-interest. So that's one way that our actions are speaking louder than our words. The other is, we have a business plan to grow the Alberta Party, which has very clear and set metrics."

A two-election strategy

"It's called 2020 Vision, a two-election strategy to form government. My current strategy team is still mad at me for not making 2016 our goal (chuckles)."

"(It's a) two-election strategy to form government, and in that is our very clear measures of success. How many memberships we've sold, how much money we've raised, how many constituency associations we've created, whether we have nominated a certain number of candidates. Every quarter we report on our progress, publicly. And when we're successful, that's great, we show a little green box. When we haven't hit our targets, we show a yellow box and say here's why, here's what we said we'd do, here's where we fell short, here's why and here's what we're going to do to make it up."

"I think what Albertans expect is total transparency. They don't expect perfection. And even when you make a mistake or don't achieve your targets they'll understand why if you explain what happened.  No one expects you to be perfect. So we live our values of transparency by putting it out there."

"It was a business plan. That was the project. And I was very clear all along that I want you (fellow party members) to make realistic projections of what you think this business is going to do. I will not accept... profitable after six months as a realistic projection. You have the best idea in the world, and that's why you're putting this business plan together. But it will take several years, you'll be out of the profit line for two or three years and then you'll slowly nose your way above it. You need to take a long-term mindset and you're doing this not to make a quick buck, you're doing this because you believe passionately in what you're doing."

Q: Is this the same Alberta Party we knew in the 1980s?

"No it's not. So the history of this party- we are what I call the Modern Alberta Party. About 2010 there was a group called Renew Alberta, and it was a group of Albertans who were in the middle of the political spectrum, who were not just upset with the path of the current government but didn't feel like any of the other political parties represented their values. So we got together and agreed, you know, 'We're going to create a party'. They bought enough memberships (of) the old Alberta Party to take over the board and purge the constitution, purge the membership list, purge all the policies. And so then it started fresh from that point. So there is a party that went back in the mid-80s that had, yes, quite an extreme view."

"We're not that party, we're not those people."

Connecting

At this point the conversation touched on a comment I heard from someone that the Alberta Party was seen as "the internet party", which led to me asking about the effect on Alberta politics Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi has had with what has been seen as his mastery of social media to connect with the populace.

Greg Clark: "I think that's one of the things I'd like to see brought to the Alberta legislature, is that connection to our community. Municipal politics is local so you see your mayor in council, in the grocery store, and you can talk to them and tell them what you're thinking and you know these people because maybe your kids grew up together, and you're connected."

"It's about service. You do not go into municipal politics for the glory, that's for darn sure. You do it because you have a contribution to make to your community. And I admire that, greatly."

"I'd like to see that sensibility in provincial politics. And there are some very good MLAs, there's no doubt, not every single one of 87 MLAs are terrible, but the closer you get to power, this strange thing starts to happen, you develop this distance from your community. And I think it comes, and comes back to one thing Ralph Klein had: walk into the Tim Hortons and have a coffee with them. Walk into the Legion and have a beer with them. Sit down."

"Because people thought, you know what, he's human." 

"I think Nenshi is a great example. He's very accessible, and I think Brad Wall in Saskatchewan is like that, and he's someone you feel like you know. You can have a conversation with him. I admire all the politicians for that ability and I really hope that's what I can do as the Alberta Party moves forward. I always want to be accessible."

Making the shift from business to politics

"The reason I went into politics is with the same mindset as I went into business. There wasn't a company I saw that I felt fit my values that I wanted to be a part of, that I wanted to help build. And so I thought 'You know what? I'm going to have to go create it myself.' So I got together with a couple of partners and we created a, what turns out to be, quite a successful venture. IT consulting and oil and gas. This was 2006 (when) we started."

 "I got out a little more than a year ago."

 "This is what I do full time and then some."

Q: Do you miss the entrepreneurial world?

"No not at all because, in many ways.. it was a people business. Politics is a people business. I mean I get the privilege of travelling around Alberta, and I love it. I get to sit at Mrs. P's and I get to talk to the ladies at coffee."

Sources and related links:
www.albertaparty.ca
*Greg Clark wiki