The Alberta Roundup with Isaac Lamoureux - April 03, 2024


Anti-carbon tax protesters frustrated with Smith


Episode Stats

Length

5 minutes

Words per Minute

153.2073

Word Count

824

Sentence Count

70


Summary


Transcript

00:00:00.000 Hey everyone, welcome back to the Alberta Roundup. I'm your host, Rachel Emanuel.
00:00:14.900 Today, we are taking a look at one of the biggest news stories in the country this week.
00:00:19.400 Canadians from across the country gathered on Monday to protest the latest increase to
00:00:24.720 the federal carbon tax. They gathered along provincial borders, on highways, and outside
00:00:30.640 Liberal MPs' offices. Protesters at the Nova Scotia-New Brunswick provincial border even
00:00:36.340 succeeded at slowing traffic to a near standstill until the RCMP rerouted the traffic. The tax rose
00:00:42.720 to $0.17 per litre of gasoline and $0.15 per cubic metre of natural gas on April 1st. And one of the
00:00:49.720 biggest protests took place outside of Calgary on Highway 1 heading west towards Banff. A mere 15
00:00:55.380 minutes from my house. You better believe I headed down there and here's a look at what I saw.
00:01:08.720 Plan for today is just to get organized and meet and greet people and we're waiting on a phone call
00:01:19.700 here to see if the sign place is open for traffic control.
00:01:22.700 So I just spoke to you and you said you've got no exit plan, so you guys are planning to
00:01:27.700 maybe camp out on the highway for a couple days? We're going to be camping out, yeah. There's no
00:01:31.700 departure date, let's put it that way. They keep doing this and we have to basically make an effort to
00:01:37.700 actually step up and actually get our voice out and ensure that we're not actually going to continue
00:01:47.700 with fuel prices the way that they are.
00:01:50.700 I came out here today because people are having trouble buying food and paying rent and paying for their mortgages.
00:01:57.700 We're being taxed again and more and more people are falling behind. They can't keep up. I'm standing here for the people who can't be here because we deserve to have our rights to peaceful protests.
00:02:12.700 It seems that organizers weren't joking about it being just a one day protest. I returned on Tuesday and many were still there, about 100 to be exact.
00:02:20.700 But the scene had changed significantly. There was about 30 officers stood between protesters and the highway to ensure that they would have no chance of blocking traffic once again.
00:02:29.700 Let's take a look at that scene.
00:02:31.700 It looks foolish. It's a waste of taxpayer money. They're standing in a ditch watching us smile, wave and stand for our rights.
00:03:01.700 It's a waste of money.
00:03:18.700 Also on Tuesday, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith was asked how she felt about the protesters and here's what she had to say.
00:03:24.700 Well, look, let me give that direction. I don't support it when Extinction Rebellion glues themselves to the street and stops traffic.
00:03:30.700 And I don't support anyone stopping traffic as well. You can protest, do it at the side of the road.
00:03:36.700 Don't interfere with the movement of goods. Don't interfere with the movement of your neighbors.
00:03:40.700 It's the reason why we have the Critical Infrastructure Act. And I would just ask people to be compliant with the law.
00:03:45.700 Some protesters told me that the Premier should have been there supporting them and that her absence caused them to lose support for her.
00:03:51.700 Do you think the Premier should be here? Yes.
00:03:54.700 Do you support her? No.
00:03:56.700 Because she isn't here or just you never have? Just because she's not here.
00:03:59.700 But I'm sure we would all love to talk to her and give her the time of day, right? Right.
00:04:04.700 We're all supposed to be in this together. This isn't Ontario. This is Alberta. So, you know, a lot of Albertans have had her back and we voted for her. I voted for her.
00:04:16.700 Danielle Smith, we're disappointed. I mean, she should be here, right? She's our Premier.
00:04:23.700 So, you're disappointed in the Premier. Do you think that she should be here supporting you guys?
00:04:28.700 Well, at least finding out what we're standing for. Right. Yeah.
00:04:32.700 Did you hear today, she said that she doesn't think that protesters should be blocking highways?
00:04:37.700 We didn't actually block the highway. So, that's probably a rumor. There was traffic flowing all day long.
00:04:45.700 Yeah. Just slowing traffic.
00:04:47.700 That police blocked the highway up on that hill yesterday.
00:04:50.700 That brings me to my question of the week. Do you still support Alberta Premier Daniel Smith?
00:04:54.700 Or do you believe that she should have been more supportive of the carbon tax protesters and maybe even attended one of the many demonstrations?
00:05:01.700 Comment on the video below and I'll respond to some of the best comments under Saturday's episode.
00:05:05.700 Okay, everyone. That's all we have time for today. I will be following this story with close interest.
00:05:09.700 You can see all my updates on my X account or simply stay subscribed to True North for the latest updates.
00:05:16.700 I'll see you guys on Saturday. Have a great rest of your week and God bless.
00:05:20.700 Bye.
00:05:21.700 Bye.