Deron Bilous is bringing his Coffee Chat tour to Grande Prairie and wants to hear the region’s thoughts on the latest provincial budget. The Chamber of Commerce will be hosting the 2 o’clock event Monday at Centre 2000. Staff in his office also say the Minister will be making an announcement regarding economic news for the region.
The budget this year included $126 million for the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital along with $20 million for the Highway 43 Bypass project. A new school was also announced for the O’Brien Lakes area.
The deficit is projected to be $8.8 billion this year, less than the $10.4 forecast in last year’s budget. The NDP are now banking heavily on pipeline revenue to try to balance the budget by 2023. They have by included revenue estimates from the Keystone XL and Trans Mountain Pipeline projects. Something Grande Prairie-Smoky MLA Todd Loewen called “a pretty big gamble.”
Just Sunday Kinder Morgan announced that without an agreement to move forward with work on the pipeline they may scrap the project all together. Premier Rachel Notley reacted to the news saying B.C. cannot mess with Alberta.
“Never count Alberta out. This pipeline will be built.”
Notley says her government will introduce legislation to slow the flow of oil to B.C. in the coming days.
The Chamber says pipelines are on the agenda for Monday’s event already as is fair trade agreements, support for businesses and building an economy for the future, followed by a question and answer period.
There is no cost but attendees are asked to register.