Juno News - July 01, 2023


Danielle Smith accused of 'stalling' clean energy

Topics
concerned doctors' letter
Mentioned
Dina Hinshaw Danielle Smith Sheila Annette Lewis Rebecca Schultz Tony Nichols John Kelly King Ralph Alberta Roundup Jason Lorenzen John Hansman Dave Hanson Zoom
Why Canada Should be Cherished – Not Cancelled ｜ Launch of the 1867 Project YWCA campaign “demonizes men with false numbers” (ft. Janice Fiamengo)

Episode Stats


Length

11 minutes

Words per minute

159.07

Word count

1,856

Sentence count

134

Harmful content

Hate speech

1

sentences flagged


Summary

Summaries generated with gmurro/bart-large-finetuned-filtered-spotify-podcast-summ .

Environment Minister Rebecca Schultz says the federal government's clean fuel regulations are hurting Alberta's economy, and the Alberta government has some thoughts. Premier Danielle Smith was asked why her government is stalling the transition to clean energy, and she had some thoughts on that. Sheila Lewis, the unvaccinated Canadian who's been denied an organ transplant, and finally, more than 100 doctors in Alberta are upset that Dina Hinshaw's job offer was revoked. All that and more happening now on the Alberta Roundup.

Transcript

Transcript generated with Whisper (turbo).
Hate speech classifications generated with facebook/roberta-hate-speech-dynabench-r4-target .
Topics generated with Qwen2.5-3B-Instruct.
Hosts, guests, and mentioned names generated with spaCy (en_core_web_sm), reconciled against Wikidata.
00:00:00.020 Hey everyone, welcome back to the Alberta Roundup. I hope that you guys are having a great week.
00:00:05.240 You'll have to excuse my hair, it is very humid outside and it kind of just has a mind of its own.
00:00:11.440 If you suspected that it's been a quiet week in Alberta politics, you've been correct.
00:00:16.160 Certainly a little bit slower on the news front, I expect that trend will continue throughout the summer.
00:00:21.300 But here's today's headlines.
00:00:23.620 The federal government's clean fuel regulations are coming into effect today on Saturday, July 1st.
00:00:28.880 And the Alberta government has some thoughts.
00:00:32.280 Speaking of energy, Danielle Smith was asked why her government is stalling the transition to clean energy this week.
00:00:38.340 And she had some thoughts.
00:00:39.980 I also have an update for you on Sheila Lewis.
00:00:42.820 That's the unvaccinated Canadian who's been denied an organ transplant. 0.92
00:00:46.980 And finally, more than 100 doctors in Alberta are upset that Dina Hinshaw's job offer was revoked.
00:00:53.380 All that and more happening now on the Alberta Roundup.
00:00:58.880 Okay guys, up first on Thursday, just two days ahead of its enforcement, the Alberta government joined forces with Saskatchewan and the Atlantic provinces
00:01:14.220 to call on the federal government to immediately halt the implementation of the federal Clean Fuel Regulations.
00:01:21.740 The new regulations which take effect today are part of Canada's plan requiring producers and importers of liquid fossil fuels,
00:01:29.240 like gasoline and diesel, to gradually reduce the fuel's carbon intensity.
00:01:34.140 But Alberta Environment and Protected Areas Minister Rebecca Schultz says the new policy will harm provincial economies in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Atlantic Canada.
00:01:44.180 In a statement, Schultz said,
00:01:45.220 Combined with the federal government's carbon tax increase, higher gasoline, and diesel costs are expected,
00:01:52.240 putting added cost pressures on other goods and services across the industry.
00:01:57.520 Now is not the time to drive up prices at the pump and increase expenses for vulnerable households, businesses, and industries.
00:02:05.080 Families and businesses cannot continue to afford reckless cost and tax increases imposed by the federal government.
00:02:10.780 Per the new regulations, the carbon intensity of impacted fuels must fall below 15%, its 2016 levels, by 2030.
00:02:21.180 According to Environment and Climate Change Canada, this will deliver 26 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions reductions.
00:02:29.920 It also establishes a carbon credit market in which reducing emissions earns credits that can be sold.
00:02:36.040 In May, the Parliamentary Budget Office said the Canadian economy will take a hit under the policy.
00:02:42.640 It revealed that the regulations will decrease Canada's real GDP by 0.3%, or $9 billion by 2030.
00:02:51.240 The Parliamentary Budget Officer further estimated that the cost for a low household income would be $231,
00:02:57.380 or over $1,000 for higher income households.
00:03:01.380 Saskatchewan is one of the provinces that will be hit the hardest,
00:03:04.140 costing the average household over $1,100 by 2030, the PBO estimated.
00:03:10.500 And while we're on the topic of energy, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith was asked why her government
00:03:14.860 is, quote, stalling the transition to clean energy while at the annual Western Premier's conference earlier this week.
00:03:22.460 I don't think she liked that question very much.
00:03:24.360 Here's what she had to say about it.
00:03:26.340 We don't stall anything.
00:03:28.400 We just don't accept that oil and natural gas should be phased out.
00:03:31.940 And by the nature of your question, I'm assuming that's what you think needs to happen.
00:03:36.560 I totally disagree.
00:03:38.160 We are going to reduce emissions, and we're going to reduce emissions by carbon capture utilization and storage,
00:03:43.500 by transitioning to hydrogen, and by working with our partners to export LNG.
00:03:48.220 We're going to have continued use of hydrocarbon fuels for petrochemicals.
00:03:52.920 Dow Chemical has a zero emissions petrochemical plant that they're close to making a final investment decision on.
00:03:59.540 Air Products is making a net zero hydrogen investment.
00:04:05.160 Our oil sands are making a net zero investment by 2050.
00:04:08.960 We're increasingly seeing bitumen beyond combustion for the use of bitumen for asphalt, which is a construction material.
00:04:16.000 And so that's the framework we need to get into, is that we are not transitioning away from hydrocarbons.
00:04:21.520 We are not transitioning away from oil and natural gas.
00:04:23.760 We're transitioning away from emissions.
00:04:25.380 And we have embraced the 2050 target.
00:04:27.800 Moving into what we're watching in the weeks to come, I wanted to include this in today's episode
00:04:32.540 because not many of you guys got the chance to watch it during the week.
00:04:36.200 Probably you weren't looking for it because I don't typically release episodes midweek.
00:04:41.160 However, I did have the opportunity to interview Sheila Annette Lewis.
00:04:44.940 She is, of course, the Canadian woman who's been denied an organ transplant
00:04:48.900 because she refused the COVID-19 vaccine.
00:04:52.280 And I had a chance to ask her a little bit about her story,
00:04:55.120 including how she has found the resilience to keep fighting against all odds.
00:05:00.920 Here's what she had to say about it.
00:05:02.440 There's lots of times.
00:05:04.680 There really is.
00:05:05.740 There's lots of times that, you know, I'm sitting here and I'm thinking and it's quiet and I'm by myself.
00:05:12.040 You know, it's late at night and I can't sleep for one reason or another.
00:05:19.120 And yeah, I think about just, that's it.
00:05:22.600 Nothing's enough.
00:05:24.140 But what's that going to do?
00:05:26.680 It's not going to get me nowhere and it's not going to get anybody else anywhere.
00:05:30.300 But at the same time, the truth needs to come out.
00:05:34.900 And if I just stop it all, which they want me to, these doctors, they want me to go away.
00:05:41.820 Like they used to ask me in the Zoom calls at the end.
00:05:46.100 They would say when they called, oh, you're still hanging in, I see, because I answered the phone.
00:05:52.340 It's like, yeah, I'm still hanging in.
00:05:54.240 But they want me to go away.
00:05:56.540 They want to silence me.
00:05:58.840 And no, it ain't going to happen.
00:06:01.940 So I will fight as long as I can and do what I can to fight for myself and the rest of Canada.
00:06:12.760 For the other people that need these surgeries as well.
00:06:16.000 But yes, there's times it gets tough, like really tough, especially when it's hard to breathe.
00:06:25.180 And there's a lot of times when I exert myself, when I get up to do something, even with the third machine.
00:06:35.400 It's tough.
00:06:36.240 It's tough to keep going sometimes.
00:06:41.920 But I have to.
00:06:43.640 I have to keep fighting.
00:06:46.600 I never was one to give up before, so I'm going to start now.
00:06:51.480 For those of you who are interested in her story, you can go and find the full interview on our website, tnc.news, or on YouTube.
00:06:59.380 It is posted as a typical Alberta Roundup episode.
00:07:02.200 And of course, you are more than welcome to donate to Sheila's GoFundMe.
00:07:06.760 We will link that below.
00:07:08.240 Moving into the controversy of the week, more than 100 Alberta doctors have signed letters voicing concern over the decision to rescind former Chief Medical Health Officer Dina Hinshaw's appointment earlier this week.
00:07:20.760 As we discussed extensively on the show last week, Hinshaw was hired for a role with Indigenous Wellness Corps.
00:07:26.360 That's an Alberta Health Services program.
00:07:28.600 And that offer was rescinded shortly after public backlash emerged.
00:07:33.800 Now, concerned doctors have sent a letter to Alberta's official administrator, Dr. John Cowell, as well as Alberta Premier Daniel Smith, to express their concerns.
00:07:42.660 The letter reads, quote,
00:07:43.780 There is no place for leadership which undermines the decisions, recommendations, and sovereignty of the Indigenous Wellness Corps, and no place for political interference in healthcare delivery.
00:08:10.600 At a press conference earlier this week, Danielle Smith was asked about the decision to rescind Hinshaw's offer, and if there was any political interference.
00:08:19.660 The Premier has remained very tight-lipped about the situation.
00:08:23.360 Here's what that looked like.
00:08:25.300 No, I have a person I've hired at the head of Alberta Health Services, Dr. John Cowell, to make personnel decisions.
00:08:33.620 He makes personnel decisions.
00:08:34.840 It's up to him to answer those questions.
00:08:37.500 And moving into our comment roundup, last week I asked you guys what we should call our conservative country if, hypothetically speaking, we were to form one.
00:08:46.800 And I got a lot of answers.
00:08:48.000 Some of you understood the assignment.
00:08:50.180 Some of you, not so much.
00:08:52.060 John Hines said,
00:08:53.060 As far as name goes for a conservative nation, it will have to be a republic, so just call it the Republic of Canada.
00:08:57.960 The flag is easily, a grizzly, crowned majestically over blue, green, and white colours.
00:09:04.000 Obviously, King Ralph can be the adverse bust on our coinage.
00:09:07.840 This seemed to be a very popular comment.
00:09:09.820 I am entirely on board with King Ralph being on all our coinage.
00:09:13.560 Don't know if we want to call our country the Republic of Canada if Canada keeps its name, but I suppose we can dive into that discussion a little later on.
00:09:21.320 Dave Hines said,
00:09:22.220 For a new country including Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, we should include invite the relevant territories in northern BC.
00:09:29.240 Generally, the area was originally to be one province, the province of Buffalo, so it seems fitting that it would be the country of Buffalo.
00:09:36.660 Buffalo isn't a terrible name.
00:09:38.080 However, I don't really like that there's also a state called Buffalo because we'll always have to make that distinction.
00:09:42.640 Buffalo, the country, not the state, similar to places like Georgia.
00:09:46.280 So I think it would be better. I think we could find something a little more original. I don't hate it, but I think we can do better.
00:09:51.780 And Jason Lorenzen said,
00:09:53.260 Considering that we Albertans would still be the ones filling the bill, the country should be named Alberta.
00:09:58.240 Manitoba has nothing for us other than access to the Hudson's Bay, and Saskatchewan doesn't come anywhere close to our revenues.
00:10:04.660 I saw a lot of comments sort of with the same mindset, we should just continue to call ourselves Alberta.
00:10:09.820 I think that's a fair proposal. I think that's definitely something that we could discuss down the line.
00:10:13.120 I think it's probably better than something like the Republic of Canada, especially if Canada keeps its name way too confusing.
00:10:19.800 Tony Nichols said,
00:10:20.680 I love Canada as one nation. If you formed your own country, tell it like it would be.
00:10:25.440 Call it Traitoria or Seditionville, or perhaps Quebec West.
00:10:29.740 Tony, now you're just being unnecessarily offensive. Of course, we're not going to call ourselves Quebec West.
00:10:35.800 Also, I think you might be taking this assignment a little too seriously. It's just a hypothetical question.
00:10:40.100 I don't think real talks of separation are on the table at all right now.
00:10:44.420 And Pat's Garage said,
00:10:45.360 Can we just keep the name Canada and the East can change theirs to New China?
00:10:48.920 Yes, absolutely we can.
00:10:50.700 That seems like the most reasonable response of all the ones that I have read so far.
00:10:55.400 Okay, guys, that's all I have for you today.
00:10:56.940 Thank you so much for tuning into today's episode of the Alberta Roundup.
00:11:00.800 I hope that you enjoy your long weekend and happy Canada Day.
00:11:05.000 May God keep our nation strong and free.
00:11:07.220 See you all next week.
00:11:10.100 See you all next week.