Carelessness, inexperience put NDP in tough place with Bill 6: experts
Posted Dec 3, 2015 8:45 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The battle between farmers fighting against Bill 6 and the government shows no sign of slowing down.
Farmers and rancher are not happy the bill would make participation in the workers compensation board mandatory, extend occupational health and safety rules, put in place employment standards and change the labour code.
The province has admitted mistakes, but it may be too late to sway opinion.
Mount Royal University political scientist Lori Williams says the NDP’s carelessness in this matter is strange, especially since it was so careful to form a coalition of partners when it came to climate change.
“They did the consulting part without providing information about what the proposal was and all kinds of speculation and fear mongering started to generate and now they’ve got a very angry group of farmers and ranchers who feel they haven’t been consulted and haven’t been listened to,” she said. “We know that farmers and ranchers in the past have stood against a number of initiatives and in some cases caused the government to back down and one of the reason we don’t yet have this legislation in Alberta, despite the fact it’s in all other provinces in the country, is precisely because there’s been resistance.”
She argues either way there would have been staunch opposition against the NDP and the bill just on ideological grounds, and there is a sense many farmers and ranchers see the NDP as everything urban, with no idea how rural communities work.
University of Calgary political scientist Doreen Barrie says it’s obvious the new government is dealing with a steep learning curve.
“The Wildrose is obviously trying to exploit the situation because that’s where their base is but it’s true the government could have done a better job,” she explained. “They don’t want to alienate rural voters. Clarity was lacking, I think the timeline is a bit too tight and the communication was inadequate.”
She adds it’s never easy to start regulating a business which has never really had regulation before.
The Wildrose still believes the bill can be killed and has called for a noon rally at the Alberta legislature.
The battle between farmers fighting against Bill 6 and the government shows no sign of slowing down.
Farmers and rancher are not happy the bill would make participation in the workers compensation board mandatory, extend occupational health and safety rules, put in place employment standards and change the labour code.
The province has admitted mistakes, but it may be too late to sway opinion.
Mount Royal University political scientist Lori Williams says the NDP’s carelessness in this matter is strange, especially since it was so careful to form a coalition of partners when it came to climate change.
“They did the consulting part without providing information about what the proposal was and all kinds of speculation and fear mongering started to generate and now they’ve got a very angry group of farmers and ranchers who feel they haven’t been consulted and haven’t been listened to,” she said. “We know that farmers and ranchers in the past have stood against a number of initiatives and in some cases caused the government to back down and one of the reason we don’t yet have this legislation in Alberta, despite the fact it’s in all other provinces in the country, is precisely because there’s been resistance.”
She argues either way there would have been staunch opposition against the NDP and the bill just on ideological grounds, and there is a sense many farmers and ranchers see the NDP as everything urban, with no idea how rural communities work.
University of Calgary political scientist Doreen Barrie says it’s obvious the new government is dealing with a steep learning curve.
“The Wildrose is obviously trying to exploit the situation because that’s where their base is but it’s true the government could have done a better job,” she explained. “They don’t want to alienate rural voters. Clarity was lacking, I think the timeline is a bit too tight and the communication was inadequate.”
She adds it’s never easy to start regulating a business which has never really had regulation before.
The Wildrose still believes the bill can be killed and has called for a noon rally at the Alberta legislature.
