The UCP and its greed-driven agenda a threat to all Albertans

By Lethbridge Herald on November 9, 2022.

Editor:

Re: AT THE LEGISLATURE Opinion – Oct. 19, 2022

Hiding behind a thin veneer of vague platitudes and gratuitous victory laps, MLA Nathan Neudorf hopes his embellishment of Lethbridge’s prestige will inspire confidence in his party – a party that has been undeniably adept at failing Albertans, as well as public healthcare. 

If we weren’t still recovering from a mass exodus of Alberta doctors, perhaps people may be so quick to forget that this nightmare was completely avoidable. 

In an effort led by Jason Kenney and former health minister Tyler Shandro, the UCP made a political decision to unapologetically mistreat and demonize healthcare workers. 

They attacked the Alberta Medical Association unjustly, eventually terminating their contract with the province – all amidst the height of the pandemic. By December of 2021, an estimated 45,000+ people in the Lethbridge area alone were without a family physician. Yet, a tone-deaf Neudorf flaunts 17 new doctors while conveniently disregarding why so many left in the first place. 

It’s no secret that the UCP is a party driven by predatory privatization and corporate interests. They’ve shown very little desire to preserve our single-payer healthcare system despite its overwhelming popularity, but they’ll waste no time reminding us that they’re fighting for our “freedom.”

If his party really wanted to make Alberta an adequate place to live, let alone “the best” as Neudorf claims, I’m not sure that their decision to terminate an auto-cap that protected Albertans from predatory insurance hikes, displays this sentiment. Nor does cutting social programs that protect our most vulnerable; or trying to implement a flat tax system that would only serve to bolster the wealthiest; or the removal of numerous services formerly covered under Alberta’s “publicly-funded” healthcare. These examples don’t even begin to scratch the surface of a party who continues to undermine Albertans by perpetually praising private profits instead of prioritizing people.

Neudorf’s new party leader, Danielle Smith – whom he shamelessly endorsed – has wasted no time adding fuel to the flames of the doctor dilemma, vowing to fire the entire AHS and CPSA (College of Physicians & Surgeons of Alberta) boards, while making egregious accusations that AHS manufactured staff shortages. Smith also has a history of spreading medical misinformation on platforms like Twitter, where she’s taken extensive criticism for her dissemination of lies, conspiracies, and racist dog whistles. 

Mr. Neudorf speaks of an Alberta Advantage as though living in Alberta is inherently beneficial, but don’t be fooled by his demagoguery. Whether his generous portrayal of Alberta as some thriving utopia is sincere or not is irrelevant, when the threat of his party and their greed-driven agenda continues to be very real.

Danny Ponomar

Lethbridge