Edmonton Journal

Maria Fitzpatrick stood up in the Alberta Legislature and told a harrowing story of domestic violence. The Lethbridge MLA's impassioned plea started a busy week, one that saw unanimous support for independent MLA Deborah Drever's bill to allow endangered abuse victims to escape leases. Later on, the NDP proposed protections for farm workers, as well as gender identity and expression. Meanwhile, another 'unite the right' campaign pops up, eager to bring the Wildrose and Progressive Conservative parties to Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Winning the election is hard. Governing is much harder. Half a year since Alberta voters tossed out the Tories, the NDP government has run into a bit of trouble. A recent poll has only 27 per cent of Albertans saying Rachel Notley's crew is doing a good job, and places the party at a statistical dead heat with Brian Jean's Wildrose. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, city columnist Paula Simons, provincial affairs columnist Graham Thomson and provincial affairs report Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Somebody check the calendar. Yep. Still 2015. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's temporal argument for gender parity in his cabinet caused a bit of a stir Wednesday, a day when two veteran Alberta politicians -- former Calgary MLA Kent Hehr and former Edmonton councillor Amarjeet Sohi -- were handed two of the most powerful jobs in the country. Back in Alberta, Calgary Varsity MLA Stephanie McLean let it be known that she is the first sitting MLA to be pregnant, a case that exposed a lack of allowances for s Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With oil prices bogged down below $50, everybody’s a little scared about Alberta’s prospects. Premier Rachel Notley’s NDP government released their long awaited budget on Tuesday, leading to howls and screams over a $6.1 billion deficit and ongoing deficit spending. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, city columnist Paula Simons, provincial affairs columnist Graham Thomson and reporter and editorial writer Dan Barnes join host Brent Wittmeier in a studio lockup. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The red tide has risen. Monday’s federal election saw Liberal leader Justin Trudeau topple Stephen Harper’s Conservative regime. The knives are out, the campaigns are being dissected and armchair prime ministers are picking fantasy cabinets. We talk about Premier Rachel Notley’s cabinet adjustment and the appointment of a new Alberta Health Services board. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, city columnist Paula Simons, provincial affairs reporter Mariam Ibrahim a Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There could be some seismic shakeups in government in coming days. Or none whatsoever. After another acrimonious debate over the Edmonton Catholic School's gender and sexual orientation and gender identity policy, Education Minister David Eggen has brought in an outside advisor to help the board with governance. Three days before Monday's federal election, we also talk about the prospects of a Liberal government, and whether the NDP's final forays into Alberta, will win any votes. This week on The Press Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Something's going on with all those polls. Albertans have a sordid history with polls, and with the federal election winding down into it's final 10 days, there's finally been some major shifts in public opinion polls. But some days, the polls say very different things. We also talk about Education Minister David Eggen's recent announcement that 101 schools are behind schedule. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, city columnist Paula Simons, provincial affairs reporter J Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Playing politics is a serious allegation these days. With a federal election in full swing, plus some jousting in Alberta over a new NDP government, politicians are accusing other politicians of playing politics. We pick up on Naheed Nenshi's tiff with Jason Kenney over the niqab debate, as well as former CPC MP and Alberta trade envoy Rob Merrifield's accusations of interference from the office of Rachel Notley, who's in eastern Canada and the U.S. this week to discuss pipleines. A final French language Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alberta Premier Rachel Notley has been talking about the upcoming "shock absorber" budget, which will balance economic concerns with a heavy emphasis on infrastructure spending. Notley will head off this weekend to talk to power brokers in Toronto, Montreal and New York. The federal election continues to roll on into its final weeks, with a French language debate on Thursday and an upcoming debate on Monday. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, city columnist Paula Simon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Journal has rebranded in NDP orange. Well no, that's just the fall colours on our new stylized logo of the North Saskatchewan River valley. The second federal leaders debate was held in Calgary Thursday. Premier Rachel Notley found herself explaining about embarrassing cousins. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, city columnist Paula Simons, reporter Sheila Pratt and National Post reporter Tristin Hopper join host Brent Wittmeier to talk about the federal debate and Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In politics, planning doesn't always translate into success. On the federal level, Stephen Harper has brought in a new fixer to get his message back on track. In Edmonton city politics, general manager Simon Farbrother was fired Thursday. Possibly because of how things might go awry, Rachel Notley’s caucus has been holed up in Banff for a fall retreat. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, city columnist Paula Simons, provincial affairs reporter Mariam Ibrahim join host Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The dog days of summer are over and it's time for back to school. In Alberta politics, things have begun to pick up once again. With a Calgary Foothills by-election victory, the Wildrose won their first urban seat. It’s not even Labour Day, and Rachel Notley’s critics are already accusing her government of prioritizing the civil service over the private sector. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal's politics podcast, reporter Sheila Pratt (@SheilaMPratt), provincial affairs columnist Graha Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mike Duffy's trial is dominating Canada's media landscape, with Nigel Wright and Benjamin Perrin testimony this week fueling speculation about who knew what when. On the campaign trail, Stephen Harper looks increasingly annoyed by the repeated questions about the matter. What will it mean in Alberta? This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, city columnist Paula Simons, provincial affairs columnist Graham Thomson and provincial affairs reporter Mariam Ibrahim join host Brent Wi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There weren’t any knock-out punches in Thursday’s federal leaders debate, but there were certainly interesting moments. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, city columnist Paula Simons, provincial affairs columnist Graham Thomson and provincial affairs reporter Jodie Sinnema join host Brent Wittmeier to talk winners, losers and highlights from the Thursday night fracas. Also discussed this week, Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s comments that Alberta’s provincial go Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The federal election is heating up while the economy is cooling down. Oil has dipped below $50 per barrel and could drop down to the low forties, while the economy continues to struggle. All this means trouble for the provincial NDP, but could be a mixed blessing for the federal Conservatives, expected to call an election on the Heritage Day long weekend. We talk big infrastructure announcements for Calgary, and the somewhat smaller amounts coming to Edmonton. All that plus Transalta's big fight with the Al Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Press Gallery #97: The Gathering Storm Edition The title of this week’s podcast shares its name with Winston Churchill’s masterful book on the buildup to the Second World War. While we can’t claim the magnificence of Churchill’s literature or oratory, our panellists do an admirable job of setting the stage for what could be a one of the most exciting federal election campaigns in recent memory. We explore how the race is shaping up in Alberta, ask whether Rachel Notley’s big victory in May co Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Canada’s premiers are in Newfoundland, where they've brokered a deal on a national energy strategy, despite some harrumphing from Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall. What does the new deal mean? And what are the political games going on behind the scenes? This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, reporter Sheila Pratt and city columnist Paula Simons weigh in. and political affairs columnist Graham Thomson speaks from Newfoundland to host Brent Wittmeier. Good Stuff from the Gal Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's Stampede time in Cowtown, which means all politicians are in town to flip pancakes and try to win votes. For the first time in Premier Rachel Notley's tenure, she met with Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and was photographed with her hat on backwards. There was a new report from Auditor General Merwan Saher detailing a host of problems. Notley publicly asked her cabinet to come up with a plan to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. And in Sherwood Park, there wer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The summer legislative session is over, but a few announcements made big news in Alberta politics. There was a $1.1 billion provincial budget surplus carrying over from last year, the first announced hike to the minimum wage and a Postmedia poll that suggests the Wildrose would form government if an election was held today. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, reporters Sheila Pratt and Mariam Ibrahim join provincial affairs columnist Graham Thomson and host Brent Wittme Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The summer session of the Alberta Legislature wrapped up this week with a few late night sessions. And the Alberta NDP made several announcements related to energy and environment files, including the panel for the royalty review, a climate change panel and the possibility of revisiting the mandate of the Alberta Energy Regulator. This week on The Press Gallery, Edmonton Journal’s politics podcast, reporter Sheila Pratt and city columnist Paula Simons join host Brent Wittmeier to talk about energy, enviro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices