West of Centre

So … now what? On Wednesday, Jason Kenney announced he would resign as Alberta premier after receiving 51.4 per cent support from the party in a leadership vote. Host Kathleen Petty is joined by the CBC’s Jason Markusoff, Kelly Cryderman from the Globe and Mail and freelance columnist Graham Thomson to discuss what comes next for the United Conservative Party — and for the province.

Saskatchewan has undergone a massive shift on the political spectrum over many decades. In it, there are some lessons for its neighbour to the west. Host Kathleen Petty is joined by Dale Eisler, author of From Left to Right, to talk about that political transformation and what Alberta and Canada can learn from it.

A leadership debate and a leadership review. Premier Jason Kenney came up at a conservative conference that was also hosting the first debate for Conservative Party leadership candidates – a debate full of attacks and acrimony. Host Kathleen Petty is joined by Alex Boyd from the Toronto Star, Calgary Sun columnist Rick Bell and Corey Hogan from The Strategists to discuss how the events in the national party and Kenney’s provincial party reflect on the conservative movement.

Close friends and allies sometimes need a little push. A $3.7-million-dollar push, to be exact. Alberta’s government is spending that money on advertising, public relations and communications contracts south of the border. This week, Alberta’s representative to the U.S. James Rajotte and Maryscott Greenwood from Crestview Strategy and the Canadian American Business Council join host Kathleen Petty to talk about Alberta’s relationship with the U.S. and how that fits in with the political scene in Canada.

Alberta’s premier and governing party have spent two years combating scandals, bad polling and a pandemic – but what has the official opposition been up to? This week, guest host Jim Brown is joined by Leah Ward from Metric Strategies, Keith McLaughlin from New West Public Affairs and Lisa Young from the University of Calgary to talk about Alberta’s NDP and what the party’s strategy is as we slowly tick down to the next election.

Premier Jason Kenney’s leadership review vote is underway and UCP members are sending in ballots to decide whether he stays or goes. This week, host Kathleen Petty is joined by Erika Barootes from Enterprise Canada and the former president of the UCP, and Vitor Marciano, a key advisor to former Wildrose leader Brian Jean, to debate the question of the party’s leadership and future.

The federal budget contained billions in new spending on a carbon capture tax credit for the oil and gas industry – details released the same week as the kick-off for Premier Jason Kenney’s leadership review. This week host Kathleen Petty sits down with Gary Mar, president of the Canada West Foundation, Kelly Cryderman, a reporter at the Globe and Mail, and Lori Williams, a political scientist from Mount Royal University.

The federal government has announced its plan to slash emissions by 2030. Alberta’s government says it’s a bad joke, the opposition NDP call it a fantasy and the prime minister insists it’s ambitious yet achievable. So which is it? This week, host Kathleen Petty is joined by Calgary Chamber of Commerce President Deb Yedlin, Sara Hastings-Simon, an expert in energy transitions from the University of Calgary and Tracy Johnson, head of CBC Calgary’s business unit.

This week saw major changes to the United Conservative Party’s leadership review, moving it to mail-in ballots after more than 15,000 people signed up to decide the fate of Premier Jason Kenney. More information came out about allegations dating back to the last UCP leadership race and the very next day a recording of Kenney speaking to staff was leaked. Host Kathleen Petty is joined by Maclean’s journalist Jason Markusoff, Carolyn Dunn from CBC Calgary, and Duane Bratt, a political scientist at Mount Royal University.

Brian Jean is back, re-entering the party of his political rival at a critical crossroads for Premier Jason Kenney. The United Conservative Party leadership review is scheduled for April 9 and both sides are pushing thousands of members to show up to vote. Host Kathleen Petty is joined by Blaise Boehmer from NATIONAL Public Relations, Rishi Nagar from RED FM and Janet Brown from Janet Brown Opinion Research to talk about what that momentum means for Kenney and what else could we see in the lead up to the vote.