Over 250 people packed the gymnasium at Holy Trinity Catholic School over the weekend for a town hall meeting with Danielle Smith.
Saturday afternoon’s event offered a chance for Olds and area residents to ask Alberta’s Premier some burning questions, to hear from outgoing MLA for the Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills constituency Nathan Cooper and for the campaign launch of the new United Conservative Party candidate for the riding’s upcoming by-election – Tara Sawyer.
Smith says she was asked some tough questions – which is what she was expecting – during the town hall. According to Smith, there is a lot of disappointment that we have another term of Liberal government with a lot of the same faces at the table. They have seen a lot of talk about change in direction, but she notes there has not been a lot of action. So while there is a lot a skepticism in the room, Smith is still being very hopeful that we will be seeing some changes in the Throne Speech and the legislation. She says “but that is my job for the next six months is to work on getting a change of direction from the federal government, so we can start building things again.”
Cooper had to step aside as both the MLA for the riding and as the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta to accept his new post as Alberta’s senior representative to the United States. Cooper says he flies to Washington, D.C. for the first time since getting the new job this Thursday.
Smith points out that Cooper has done an amazing job representing this riding and as Speaker as well. She says “he has built so many relationships cross-border into the United States and at this moment in history of our relationship with the U.S. that experience is just going to be vitally important in restoring trade ties there but with Tara, Sawyer, I’m so pleased because of the experience she has. Her kids are fifth generation farmers, she is a food producer herself of grain, she has been at the helm of the grain growers.” Sawyer is used to being an advocate from her time with Alberta Grains and Smith expects her to continue to do that if she becomes an MLA.
Smith says the by-election in the Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills constituency will be called “soon” and the public “won’t have to wait too long.”
