The United Conservative Party removed a northern Alberta MLA from its caucus on Friday after he indicated on social media that he would not vote in favour of an “indefensible” provincial budget, which he said favoured urban areas over rural communities.
Scott Sinclair, a backbencher who was elected to represent the Lesser Slave Lake riding two years ago, posted on Facebook last Saturday that he found last week’s budget “at best, disappointing and, at worst, unacceptable.” He said he is supportive of the UCP’s intention to introduce a tax cut but said a multi-billion dollar deficit is difficult to swallow, adding that he is “furious” at the amount of money being provided to Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta’s two largest cities.
“The continuous flow of our GDP to urban centers while rural Alberta – the backbone of this province – gets left behind is appalling,” said Mr. Sinclair. “It feels like we’re dealing with a provincial version of federal equalization payments, with rural communities footing the bill for the big cities.”
Mr. Sinclair is the second member of the UCP caucus to challenge his own party in recent weeks. Peter Guthrie, who was infrastructure minister, resigned late last week in protest of Premier Danielle Smith’s handling of allegations that government officials pressed the provincial health authority to sign contracts that favoured private businesses.
Mr. Guthrie, unlike Mr. Sinclair, now sits in the UCP’s backbench and on Friday confirmed he is on probation, meaning he is not permitted to join caucus or committee meetings.
Government Whip Shane Getson, in a statement Friday, said Mr. Sinclair was removed following a caucus vote.
“Budget votes are confidence votes. The failure of a budget to pass results in an immediate election. All government MLAs are expected to vote in favour of a tabled budget,” said Mr. Getson. “MLA Sinclair has made it clear, both in his social media posts and in his conversations with colleagues, that he intends to vote against the budget. As an elected MLA he has that right, but may not do so as a member of the government caucus.”
The provincial budget was tabled last Thursday. It is expected that Alberta will usher in years of deficits due to sagging energy prices and a trade war with the United States. A $5.2-billion deficit is anticipated in the coming fiscal year, a swing of $11-billion from its expected surplus of $5.8-billion in the current year. The tax cut will shave $1.2-billion from the province’s revenue.
In his post, Mr. Sinclair said the budget should have focused on fixing transportation and health care infrastructure in northern Alberta, pointing to emergency department closures and what he considered essential projects, such as Highway 88. “This budget is indefensible for the Lesser Slave Lake Constituency, and I will not support or vote for it ‘as is’ without significant changes,” he said.
He did not respond to a request for comment on Friday. Ms. Smith’s office did not acknowledge a request for comment.
Mr. Sinclair was the only Indigenous candidate for the UCP in the May, 2023 election and became the party’s first elected Indigenous member. In July, 2023, he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Indigenous policing. Mr. Sinclair now sits as an Independent.