Anxiety levels are high in Alberta months into the pandemic.The latest CBC-Road Ahead poll surveyed Albertans on what they think now on a range of political issues. Kathleen Petty breaks down the numbers with Janet Brown of Janet Brown Opinion Research, data scientist John Santos, political scientists Melanee Thomas of the University of Calgary and Duane Bratt of Mount Royal University.

The prime minister’s $2.2 billion infrastructure announcement this week had many rural and urban leaders asking, “is that all there is?” The money isn't new, but will come all at once, instead of the usual two annual payments. It will be shared among more than 3,500 communities. It’s far from the $10 billion the Federation of Canadian Municipalities had lobbied for. Kathleen Petty talks to the mayor of Saskatoon and a rural Alberta councilor, both vice-chairs of FCM’s Western Economic Solutions Taskforce, about what they do now amidst a deepening economic crisis.

Covering politics is a changing enterprise. Fewer reporters with more deadlines are feeding news cycles around the clock. Are politicians getting a fair shake? An almost two-year-old comment from Stephen Harper during a book tour has fired up the debate once again. Kathleen Petty talks to three journalists: Rob Russo, CBC’s Ottawa bureau chief, Globe and Mail columnist Kelly Cryderman and Murray Mandryk, a columnist with the Regina Leader-Post and Saskatoon StarPhoenix.

Covering politics is a changing enterprise. Fewer reporters with more deadlines are feeding news cycles around the clock. Are politicians getting a fair shake? An almost two-year-old comment from former prime minister Stephen Harper during a book tour has fired up the debate once again. Kathleen Petty talks to three journalists: Rob Russo, CBC’s Ottawa bureau chief, Globe and Mail columnist Kelly Cryderman and Murray Mandryk, a columnist with the Regina Leader-Post and Saskatoon StarPhoenix.

Alberta opposition leader Rachel Notley knows what it’s like to govern in tough times. She led the NDP to a majority government in 2015, just months after a crash in oil prices and an economic downturn. Now she’s trying to hold Premier Jason Kenney’s feet to the fire amidst a pandemic, a crisis in the oil and gas industry and greater economic uncertainty. The CBC’s Jim Brown, in this week for host Kathleen Petty, asks the NDP leader “what would Rachel Notley do?”

COVID-19 is battering economies in Canada's major cities. While some economists predict a rebound when the virus is contained, Edmonton and Calgary might not be so lucky. On top of the virus and the impact of a shuttered economy, they’re coping with the effects of a collapse in world oil prices and demand while delivering essential services. Revenues have plummeted and cities can't run deficits. Kathleen Petty talks to Edmonton mayor Don Iveson and Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi about the unique challenges for Alberta’s two largest cities.

Economists predicted brutal numbers in the Labour Force Survey for April when the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic took hold. Three Alberta-based economists look at the story behind the data, and how income support programs might need to adjust to meet the needs of people who are jobless or underemployed. Associate professors Lindsay Tedds and Trevor Tombe are with the University of Calgary. Andrew Leach is an associate professor at the University of Alberta.

Provinces are taking steps toward opening up the economy and services, shut down by COVID-19. Some economists say Canada is already in recession, and some provincial economies have been devastated. In the case of Alberta, the hits just keep on coming. Three opinion leaders from three western provinces weigh in: Charles Adler, host of Charles Adler Tonight on the Global News Radio Network; Licia Corbella, a senior columnist with the Calgary Herald, and Murray Mandryk, political columnist with the Regina Leader-Post and Saskatoon StarPhoenix.

Many oil and gas companies are trying to survive through gutted oil prices, oversupply and low demand. They are desperate for cash to stay afloat, and looking to Ottawa for help.The sector employs hundreds of thousands of Canadians and provides Canada’s largest export. Does the rest of the country get it? Kathleen Petty talks to two Alberta senators - Paula Simons with the Independent Senators Group and Doug Black with the Canadian Senators Group.

The prime minister’s response to what he calls the “layers of calamity” in the energy sector include $1.7 billion for oil and gas workers to clean up abandoned and inactive wells, and $750 million for emission reductions. Kathleen Petty asks three key energy analysts what it will mean for a sector gutted by COVID-19 and cratering oil prices: Peter Tertzakian, executive director of ARC Energy Research Institute and the creator of Energyphile, Gary Mar, president and CEO of the Canada West Foundation and Rory Johnston, managing director and market economist at Price Street Inc.