Juno News - Alberta puts out policing call to foreigners

00:00:00.000 Rent in Calgary is reaching heights never before seen.

00:00:02.860 The Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation is warning that rates could soon be comparable to Toronto,

00:00:07.540 as prices increase faster here than anywhere else in the country.

00:00:11.260 The situation is dire across the province.

00:00:14.260 Rents are being driven up in Red Deer,

00:00:16.060 and Edmonton is experiencing the lowest vacancy rate seen in decades.

00:00:20.140 The Alberta advantage of a low cost of living is disappearing before our very eyes.

00:00:25.620 So, you'll understand my confusion that the province continues to call on people

00:00:29.920 from outside the province, and outside the country, to move here.

00:00:33.920 Alberta announced this week that it is offering a new pathway to permanent residency

00:00:37.460 for foreigners who want to police in Alberta.

00:00:40.060 That's a far cry from a made-in-Alberta provincial police program

00:00:43.180 that Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she supported just two years ago

00:00:47.040 during the United Conservative Party leadership race.

00:00:49.680 And at the same time, where are these people going to live?

00:00:52.100 And at what cost to them, and all of us?

00:00:54.820 When it comes to immigration, my criticism of the Provincial Conservatives

00:00:58.060 is increasingly the same as it is of the Trudeau Liberals.

00:01:01.380 In a place as wealthy as Canada, and certainly energy-rich Alberta,

00:01:05.140 there's no reason why citizens shouldn't have as good a quality of life,

00:01:09.120 if not better, than what they grew up with.

00:01:11.540 Government policy is making that impossible.

00:01:14.140 So let's hit the brakes on immigration, and take care of our people first. 1.00

00:01:18.220 I'm Rachel Parker, and this is the Alberta Roundup.

00:01:24.820 Okay, everyone, and this is probably the last time I'm going to say it

00:01:32.260 just for anybody who missed it in previous episodes.

00:01:34.500 Yes, I have changed my name.

00:01:36.600 My name will now be appearing as Rachel Parker.

00:01:38.980 If you want to know my explanation for that,

00:01:40.780 you're going to have to go back to my last episode and get the full breakdown.

00:01:44.640 But for now, taking a look at this first story here from my colleague at True North,

00:01:49.320 foreigners interested in becoming police officers will soon be able to immigrate to Alberta

00:01:53.640 and become permanent residents.

00:01:55.960 Alberta's Provincial Nominee Program has introduced a new pathway to permanent residency

00:01:59.560 for foreign nationals aspiring to work as police officers in the province.

00:02:03.960 This initiative aims to bolster Alberta's law enforcement capabilities

00:02:07.120 and address recruitment challenges.

00:02:09.440 An update on the program's website reads,

00:02:11.260 We are creating a new Alberta Advantage Immigration Program pathway for law enforcement

00:02:15.860 to help Alberta's police services address crime

00:02:18.520 and meet their recruitment objectives for public protection.

00:02:21.300 The eligible occupations for this pathway include

00:02:23.840 commissioned and non-commissioned police officers,

00:02:27.080 police investigators, and other specialized law enforcement occupations.

00:02:31.180 The express entry system ranks immigration applications from skilled workers by score.

00:02:35.980 Alberta then nominates the most qualified candidates

00:02:37.880 to apply for permanent residents with the federal government.

00:02:40.080 The update from the province reads,

00:02:42.060 Keeping Albertans safe is a top priority of this government,

00:02:45.240 and we are committed to protecting the safety and security of Albertans

00:02:48.120 by supporting Alberta Police Service's international police officer recruitment.

00:02:52.320 So I find it baffling that there is allegedly such a shortage of Albertans

00:02:55.960 who are willing to apply that they are now needing to ask foreigners 0.99

00:03:00.380 to come over and to police Alberta residents.

00:03:03.560 I think that, first of all, I find it hard to believe,

00:03:06.260 and second of all, if that is actually a problem,

00:03:08.600 maybe there just needs to be a situation where there's more education

00:03:11.300 on what types of jobs are available within police work

00:03:14.580 and actually how coveted these jobs are

00:03:16.740 because of all the valuable aspects of them, like a great salary.

00:03:20.280 I think a lot of us conservatives in Alberta thought we were going to see

00:03:23.020 the province move into a direction of an Alberta provincial police program

00:03:26.720 because the premier said she supported a program

00:03:29.900 when she was running for the United Conservative Party leadership race,

00:03:32.720 which she obviously won a few years ago,

00:03:34.320 and we've seen no funding committed to that.

00:03:37.420 And I think that most of us thought, you know,

00:03:39.480 we are going to be having an Alberta-based policing program.

00:03:42.100 We're tired of the federal government coming in and being charged of our policing.

00:03:45.140 And I think we're really seeing the opposite of that here

00:03:46.900 where we're not looking at an Alberta-based solution.

00:03:49.080 So this program really doesn't sit right with me,

00:03:50.960 especially in our inflationary crisis

00:03:52.800 when these highly paid and sought-after jobs are very coveted.

00:03:56.580 As I said, if there is a situation

00:03:57.860 where they're simply not receiving enough applicants,

00:03:59.560 I think that's something that we should really be starting earlier on

00:04:02.260 in the school system and at colleges

00:04:03.900 where we're educating students, you know, in high school

00:04:06.240 and saying, this is a great job opportunity for you.

00:04:08.440 Moving into our next story here,

00:04:09.840 supporters flocked to see federal conservative leader

00:04:11.860 Pierre Polyev at the Calgary Stampede last weekend,

00:04:14.620 where he gave a speech portraying a very optimistic vision

00:04:18.140 for Canada's future.

00:04:19.240 For those of you who don't know,

00:04:20.120 Polyev actually grew up in Shaughnessy,

00:04:21.720 that's a neighborhood in South Calgary,

00:04:23.420 and he said that some of his best memories are from the city.

00:04:26.620 During the speech, he talked about how Canada is broken.

00:04:28.600 He said, Canadians feel that they are a long way from home,

00:04:31.620 and he pointed to the high cost of housing, food prices,

00:04:34.340 and the rising number of Canadians accessing food banks.

00:04:37.140 He also committed to,

00:04:38.100 and I thought this one was particularly interesting

00:04:39.880 because we know the crisis of this unfolding in Toronto.

00:04:42.900 I don't think it's nearly as prevalent in Alberta,

00:04:46.000 but let me know if you guys think I'm wrong on this,

00:04:48.120 but he was talking about increasing inspections

00:04:50.420 of shipping containers,

00:04:51.380 which we know are being used to ship stolen cars

00:04:54.500 to outside of the country and to the Middle East.

00:04:57.100 He also promised to implement a tax reform commission

00:05:00.120 with a three-point mandate to find tax cut

00:05:02.540 for Canadian-made products,

00:05:04.300 cut administrative and compliance burdens,

00:05:06.280 and lower taxes for the working class.

00:05:08.640 Polyev also told supporters that a conservative government

00:05:10.900 would stop overspending and money printing,

00:05:13.700 ax the carbon tax,

00:05:15.100 and champion Canadian energy.

00:05:17.000 Here's what else he had to say.

00:05:17.920 Take a listen.

00:05:18.340 The reality is that the foundation of any free market economy,

00:05:24.000 of all prosperity,

00:05:25.860 of all real economic justice,

00:05:28.660 is sound money.

00:05:30.280 That's why common-sense conservatives

00:05:32.120 will end the money printing.

00:05:34.100 We will get our central bank

00:05:35.400 back to the core mission of low inflation.

00:05:38.100 So you can hear the applause there.

00:05:48.740 That wasn't even at the end of his speech.

00:05:50.020 That was midway through it.

00:05:51.380 It paints quite the contrasting picture

00:05:53.660 to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau,

00:05:54.960 who, as you know,

00:05:55.920 did not attend the Calgary Stampede this year.

00:05:58.540 We covered that on last week's show extensively.

00:06:00.500 If you haven't seen that,

00:06:01.160 you're going to want to go back and take a listen.

00:06:03.100 Still, Trudeau was a topic of conversation

00:06:05.860 at the Stampede this year.

00:06:07.520 Just maybe not in the way that he would have liked.

00:06:09.680 Take a look at this next clip.

00:06:23.120 I'm sure you guys can use your imagination

00:06:24.860 to figure out what was being said there.

00:06:26.580 We obviously had to bleep a fair number of the words

00:06:28.700 as this is a kid-friendly show.

00:06:30.800 Okay, moving into our next story here.

00:06:32.340 A new Edmonton bylaw bans businesses

00:06:34.480 from selling bear spray to minors

00:06:36.560 after a report from the city's police force

00:06:38.480 called it one of the most common improvised weapons

00:06:40.980 used on the street.

00:06:42.280 The bylaw passed with unanimous support

00:06:43.980 from City Council on Wednesday.

00:06:46.000 It will include a new licensing regime

00:06:48.220 and requirements to track transaction records

00:06:50.620 to ensure the new regulations.

00:06:53.080 Adults will also be responsible 0.89

00:06:54.120 from keeping purchase canisters

00:06:55.680 out of reach from minors.

00:06:57.200 Businesses caught selling bear spray to minors

00:06:59.360 will receive a $2,000 fine for a first offense.

00:07:02.260 And businesses that fail to record transactions

00:07:04.560 or provide adequate product security

00:07:06.360 and a city-approved purchaser guide

00:07:07.960 will receive a $1,000 fine for a first offense.

00:07:11.000 All fines will double on second offenses.

00:07:13.060 This is some next-level socialism that we're seeing

00:07:15.260 that businesses are being required

00:07:16.880 to implement a new licensing regime

00:07:18.660 and to track transaction records

00:07:20.720 to ensure that they know

00:07:22.260 where their bear spray is going.

00:07:23.800 This is going to come at a massive cost to businesses

00:07:25.920 and I'm sure we'll see a situation

00:07:27.160 where businesses are just going to say,

00:07:28.580 you know, too difficult for us to sell bear spray.

00:07:31.000 We're just not going to carry it in stores anymore.

00:07:32.860 That's typically what we see

00:07:33.960 when governments begin to overstep

00:07:35.520 and businesses are forced to jump through hoops

00:07:38.460 to sell a product.

00:07:39.220 They just say, you know what?

00:07:39.900 It's easier for me just not to sell this.

00:07:42.080 So if you live in Edmonton,

00:07:43.200 make sure to grab some bear spray

00:07:44.900 the next time you're in Calgary

00:07:46.240 because it might become either more expensive

00:07:49.060 because businesses are going to have to pass the costs

00:07:51.540 of all these new regulations onto you, the consumer,

00:07:54.020 so they can make sure that they have time

00:07:55.860 and that they can pay employees

00:07:57.080 to be tracking all these things.

00:07:59.020 Or you're just simply not going to be able to buy it

00:08:01.420 in Edmonton for very much longer.

00:08:03.360 So make sure you grab a can of that

00:08:04.520 next time you're in Calgary.

00:08:05.960 This is such a short-sighted solution

00:08:07.380 because we know that kids

00:08:08.280 are just going to turn to something else.

00:08:09.880 Maybe knives, you know.

00:08:10.800 Soon we're going to have a knife registry in Edmonton.

00:08:12.560 If you own a knife,

00:08:13.360 you're going to have to register that knife,

00:08:14.640 the make, the model, the size, the cost.

00:08:16.400 If you want to buy a knife in Edmonton,

00:08:18.360 you know, the business is going to have to track

00:08:19.620 who they sold it to.

00:08:20.300 Soon there's going to be no knives in Edmonton.

00:08:21.680 I don't know.

00:08:22.240 They're going to continue to regulate things

00:08:23.900 that cause issues.

00:08:24.820 You're going to have to regulate everything.

00:08:25.960 Let's not try to police our way

00:08:27.780 out of every minor problem that we see in society.

00:08:30.160 And let's actually take a look

00:08:30.960 at addressing root causes.

00:08:32.500 Let's take a look at what the Edmonton mayor

00:08:34.040 had to say about it.

00:08:34.740 Anne-Marie Sohee said that the bylaw

00:08:36.180 is another tool to help officers

00:08:38.400 confiscate bearer spray.

00:08:40.120 Ward Mady councillor Ashley Salvador

00:08:41.740 supported the bylaw.

00:08:42.800 Here's what she had to say about it.

00:08:44.160 To see some additional steps being taken,

00:08:45.760 some stronger measures

00:08:46.600 through our business licensing bylaw,

00:08:48.480 I think it's a good move.

00:08:49.800 And I think community will be pleased to see

00:08:51.320 that the city is taking it seriously.

00:08:52.660 And according to the Edmonton Police Service,

00:08:54.020 the city saw over 22,000 bear spray incidents

00:08:57.120 between 2015 and 2023 with 40% deemed violent.

00:09:01.700 And for those of you who haven't experienced

00:09:03.160 or aren't aware of the impacts of bear spray,

00:09:05.420 it causes severe burning and irritation

00:09:07.520 to the skin, eyes, nose, and throat.

00:09:09.520 And it contains the same active ingredient

00:09:11.680 as found in chili peppers.

00:09:13.400 Okay, and finally,

00:09:14.160 moving into our controversy of the week,

00:09:15.640 the Alberta government will permit

00:09:16.900 selective grizzly bear hunts

00:09:18.760 should they meet a certain criteria.

00:09:21.260 Raising concerns from environmentalists

00:09:22.800 who worry about the impacts

00:09:23.900 on a threatened species.

00:09:25.340 Forestry and Parks Minister Todd Lowen

00:09:27.040 made the change

00:09:27.860 as part of a ministerial order.

00:09:29.760 Under the order,

00:09:30.400 the minister may issue

00:09:31.320 what the province refers to

00:09:32.420 as a grizzly bear management authorization

00:09:34.920 for the purpose of hunting a grizzly.

00:09:37.880 Lowen told CBC News,

00:09:39.320 this is an overall management strategy

00:09:41.280 for problem wildlife in particular

00:09:43.380 to make sure that we can respond

00:09:44.720 to rural Albertans,

00:09:46.180 both their concerns of safety,

00:09:47.560 but also loss of crop

00:09:49.220 and loss of livestock.

00:09:50.640 Lowen said it's a wildlife management tool

00:09:52.280 that will create a pool of Alberta residents

00:09:54.400 to act as public wildlife management responders.

00:09:57.440 Here's what else he had to say.

00:09:58.460 It definitely takes time

00:09:59.280 for officers to deal with this.

00:10:01.120 And we use Albertans

00:10:03.080 to manage other populations of animals

00:10:04.960 and grizzlies should be no different.

00:10:06.320 The provincial government also said

00:10:07.440 that there's been a rise in reports

00:10:09.120 of problematic and dangerous

00:10:10.980 grizzly-human and grizzly-animal interactions.

00:10:14.120 Some recent conflicts,

00:10:15.460 the province suggests,

00:10:16.280 have been predatory in nature.

00:10:17.740 In 2020, there were three attacks.

00:10:19.620 Well, 2021 recorded nine attacks

00:10:21.960 by black and grizzly bears.

00:10:23.480 The province said there were 104 attacks

00:10:25.460 from 2000 to 2021.

00:10:27.560 The ministerial order states

00:10:28.760 that authorizations can be issued

00:10:30.520 if a grizzly has been involved

00:10:31.980 in a human-bear conflict situation,

00:10:34.400 or if the bear is located

00:10:36.200 in an area of concern,

00:10:38.160 the bear must not be accompanied by a cub.

00:10:40.360 That brings me to my question

00:10:41.460 of the week for you all.

00:10:42.400 Do you support this new program?

00:10:44.100 Do you think that Albertans

00:10:45.120 should be allowed to hunt

00:10:46.620 problematic grizzlies,

00:10:48.120 or do you think that we are going

00:10:49.900 to run into an issue of a slippery slope

00:10:52.140 where people are shooting grizzlies

00:10:54.480 that are not problematic

00:10:55.460 and further endangering

00:10:57.560 an already endangered species?

00:10:59.300 Post your thoughts

00:10:59.980 in the comment section below,

00:11:01.300 and I'll get to some of those next week.

00:11:03.520 Okay, now finally,

00:11:04.520 moving into what we're watching

00:11:05.380 in the weeks to come,

00:11:06.180 we are back to Calgary,

00:11:07.180 and we are not finished talking

00:11:08.320 about the water crisis just yet

00:11:10.160 because many businesses have

00:11:12.300 and continue to be impacted

00:11:13.480 by the restrictions.

00:11:15.000 Rebel News pulled together

00:11:16.040 this report this week.

00:11:16.840 It was very well done

00:11:17.700 by my good friend, Sid.

00:11:18.720 If you're not familiar with his work,

00:11:20.220 go give him a follow on X.

00:11:22.300 This week, he uncovered

00:11:23.240 that thousands of Albertans

00:11:24.740 have and continue to be put out of work

00:11:26.560 and that an entire industry

00:11:27.680 could collapse

00:11:28.540 because of Calgary Mayor

00:11:29.840 Jody Gondek's

00:11:30.640 ongoing water restrictions.

00:11:32.300 Rebel News interviewed Kyle Brost,

00:11:34.160 president of the Canadian Prairie Chapter

00:11:35.820 of the Irrigation Association.

00:11:37.680 They represent hundreds of businesses

00:11:39.240 as well as over a thousand employees,

00:11:41.580 and they even put out of work

00:11:42.800 for over a month

00:11:43.860 due to Gondek's restrictions.

00:11:45.700 Brost said it's been over 35 days

00:11:47.660 and many irrigation companies

00:11:48.940 have been shut down completely

00:11:50.100 for that entire time.

00:11:51.580 He said that 80% of the industry

00:11:53.320 has been totally shuttered,

00:11:55.280 totaling $40 million

00:11:56.440 in lost revenues.

00:11:58.840 He also said that many

00:11:59.600 of the impacted workers

00:12:00.500 are seasonal

00:12:01.020 and really can't afford

00:12:02.200 to be out of work right now.

00:12:03.600 Take a listen to what else

00:12:04.360 he had to say.

00:12:05.220 For us as business owners,

00:12:06.960 it's not the revenue,

00:12:08.260 it's the employees.

00:12:09.580 Ultimately, 35 days

00:12:10.760 without a paycheck

00:12:11.300 is not realistic.

00:12:12.180 There's no support

00:12:13.660 for those guys

00:12:14.380 and ladies, 0.99

00:12:16.060 and frankly,

00:12:17.900 you know,

00:12:18.240 a lot of times

00:12:18.880 they're the single wager

00:12:19.940 in our household.

00:12:20.940 I would say roughly

00:12:21.700 there's over a thousand people

00:12:22.820 affected by it

00:12:23.400 because that's in our industry,

00:12:24.960 but this now bleeds

00:12:26.360 into any organization

00:12:28.200 that uses water.

00:12:29.720 So, for example,

00:12:30.940 even window washers

00:12:32.300 who use water-fed poles

00:12:33.540 to clean windows,

00:12:34.300 they can't do their work.

00:12:37.120 Landscapers,

00:12:37.800 that's a big industry

00:12:38.780 that's affected.

00:12:39.900 Okay, everyone,

00:12:40.380 and finally moving

00:12:41.360 into our weekly comment round

00:12:42.660 when I covered

00:12:43.580 that Prime Minister

00:12:44.160 Justin Trudeau

00:12:44.740 would not be coming

00:12:45.920 to the Calgary Stampede

00:12:46.800 this year,

00:12:47.480 you guys delivered

00:12:48.560 with his comment section.

00:12:50.120 Starting first

00:12:50.720 with user Gary Wagner,

00:12:52.020 he said,

00:12:52.500 quote,

00:12:52.720 good,

00:12:53.080 Alberta takes pride

00:12:53.980 in being rat-free.

00:12:55.500 User at Dunn said,

00:12:57.080 quote,

00:12:57.500 no one in Alberta

00:12:58.140 wants to see his face

00:12:59.220 as well as in BC,

00:13:00.500 Ontario,

00:13:01.020 Quebec,

00:13:01.440 Saskatchewan,

00:13:02.460 New Brunswick,

00:13:03.120 PEI,

00:13:03.760 Manitoba,

00:13:04.380 Nova Scotia,

00:13:05.420 Newfoundland and Labrador,

00:13:06.480 Northwest Territories,

00:13:07.540 Nunavut and Yukon.

00:13:08.880 He's a slow learner.

00:13:10.680 True that.

00:13:11.260 And finally,

00:13:12.000 user at Kim Shen Brenner

00:13:13.640 said,

00:13:14.360 quote,

00:13:14.820 it's a stampede,

00:13:15.760 not a gay pride parade.

00:13:17.380 Why would he show up?

00:13:18.660 Absolutely true.

00:13:19.480 I only wish

00:13:20.020 I had said it myself.

00:13:20.980 Okay, everyone,

00:13:21.420 that's all we have time

00:13:21.980 for today.

00:13:22.680 If you support our work,

00:13:23.880 you can do that over

00:13:24.500 at donate.tnc.news.

00:13:26.180 Don't forget

00:13:26.500 to give this video a like

00:13:27.720 and subscribe to True North

00:13:28.560 so you don't miss

00:13:29.000 any of our content.

00:13:30.100 Friendly reminder

00:13:30.640 to tune into my new

00:13:31.580 Wednesday show,

00:13:32.760 Rachel and the Republic,

00:13:33.540 where I dive deep

00:13:34.400 to all the issues

00:13:35.340 in the American election.

00:13:36.840 Hope that you guys

00:13:37.400 have a great weekend.

00:13:38.440 I'll see you next week

00:13:39.200 and God bless.

Juno News - July 13, 2024

Alberta puts out policing call to foreigners

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