Quote:
Originally Posted by mariners_fever
Maybe you weren't looking hard enough?
If they do it again for yesterday's budget, this will be the fifth year Wildrose has released a very thorough alternative budget explain how they would budget differently than the PCs. It goes well beyond the unicorn and rainbow level of discussion and deeper into specifics.
Here's a link to last year's: http://www.wildrosecaucus.ca/media/2013/03/WebTry.pdf
While I don't agree with much of it, I wouldn't accuse them of lacking specifics either. |
Thanks for that link. I don't have time to read it thoroughly in its entirety at the moment (so apologies in advance if some of this is off-base), but from the executive summary, the Wildrose Party is estimating they could implement the following savings:
Quote:
Recommendation: Revoke the 8% MLA pay raise and return to the
MLA salary that was in place after the 2012 election. Reduce cabinet
salary by 30%.
Savings: $1.5 million
Recommendation: Eliminate “Ministers without portfolio” and cut
ministries to 16.
Savings: $5 million
Recommendation: Cut 10% from the Legislative Assembly Office.
Savings: $7 million
Recommendation: Reduce the Public Affairs Bureau.
Savings: $10 million
Recommendation: Eliminate political patronage posts.
Savings: At least $2 million
Recommendation: Implement the Wildrose 10-Year
Debt-Free Capital Plan.
Savings: $1 billion (annually)
Recommendation: Postpone Federal Building add-ons.
Savings: $4 million
Recommendation: Cancel Family Care Clinics.
Savings: $145 million (over four years)
Recommendation: End grants to for-profit companies.
Savings: $230 million (based on 2011-2012 blue books)
Recommendation: Cancel AOSTRA 2.
Savings: $150 million (beginning 2014)
Recommendation: Eliminate Alberta Enterprise Corporation.
Savings: $99 million (one-time savings)
Recommendation: Reduce government promotional spending.
Savings: $20 million (one-time savings)
Recommendation: Hold line on front-line public sector salaries until
cash surplus established.
Savings: $140 million 2013, $420 million 2014, $700 million 2015
Recommendation: Defined contribution pension plans, not defined
benefit, for all new hires.
Savings: Ongoing
Recommendation: Limit all future severance agreements to a
maximum of $100,000 for 10 years of service.
Savings: Ongoing
Recommendation: Audit all departments and implement a zero-based
budgeting process that includes third party experts to review all
dollars spent.
Savings: $700 million - $1 billion
(3% reduction in remaining operating expenses after excluding salaries and capital.)
Recommendation: Establish a Wastebuster program.
Savings: Ongoing
Recommendation: Double the budget for the Auditor General and
establish focus on value-for-money audits.
Savings: Ongoing
Recommendation: Negotiate a better equalization deal.
Savings: Potentially billions in 2015
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I won't comment on each of these items individually, but that last recommendation, "Negotiate a better equalization deal" is simply laughable. Are they so ill-informed that they don't even understand how the equalization program works? The Government of Alberta doesn't pay a cent for equalization; it's a federal program funded with federal tax dollars. Even if Harper's Conservatives completely eliminated the equalization program tomorrow, it wouldn't result in any savings at all for the provincial government. Or are they suggesting that under Wildrose leadership Alberta would somehow become a
recipient of federal equalization dollars, thus increasing the province's revenue?
Assuming my quick "napkin math" summation of those 25 recommendations is correct, that's a total savings of $2.37B (that's generously using the upper bound whenever they give an estimate between two ranges). I'm even giving them the benefit of the doubt that they actually will realize their maximum estimate of $1B from "auditing all departments and implementing a zero-based budgeting process" -- a.k.a. the mythical "cut waste and find efficiencies" savings.
From that same document, they state that the provincial deficit is $8.3B, so even in a best-case scenario, their proposed saving measures still leave them ~$6B short of a balanced budget unless provincial revenues significantly increase through improving economic conditions and greater resource royalties.