Protesters crash Alberta UCP announcement

A UCP campaign announcement didn’t go as planned Thursday when three protesters arrived to question leader Danielle Smith about comments she made in 2021, proposing to sell off hospitals to private operators.

Smith was in Calgary with Rajan Sawhney and Calgary-Mountainview UCP candidate Pamela Rath to announce a 25 per cent discount for seniors on personal registry services, provincial camping fees, and medical driving exams.

The announcement was delayed because of Smith’s meeting with the emergency management committee for an update on the wildfire situation.

After providing a brief update on that meeting, the UCP leader went through the details of a new campaign promise, which she said is aimed at making life more affordable for Alberta seniors.

Then came time for the comments of Rath, which didn’t get too far before she was interrupted by individuals holding ‘For Sale’ signs and shouting, “Hospitals are not for sale,” questioning the leader about comments made in the 2021 video, made public by the NDP Wednesday.

Read more:

• Alberta NDP says newly uncovered video of Smith concerning for public hospitals

• UCP leader Danielle Smith’s resurfaced video links COVID vaccinated to Nazi followers 

The video, which was shot in October of that year before Smith became premier, shows her suggesting a way to sell hospitals such as Rockyview, Peter Lougheed, and South Health Campus in Calgary.

Those comments were made public just days after other controversial comments of hers came to light — including those in which she compared people who got vaccinated for COVID-19 to Nazi supporters.

Smith was whisked away by security, as were the protesters, albeit after a few moments.

The UCP leader returned and resumed the news conference before taking questions from the media.

Smith lumped the protesters and the NDP together, saying they want to misrepresent her position on health care.

In addition, she says her government is committed to not making people pay out-of-pocket for medically necessary services.

‘Everyone in this province is affected by this’

Patrick King, one of the protesters who crashed the event and a former member of the federal NDP, says the three of them were shocked when the video of Smith resurfaced. He says they acted as ordinary citizens to “gum up the works today.”

“We heard from a friend that this press conference was going on, we thought someone’s got to say something, someone’s got to let … Premier Smith know how ordinary Albertans feel about their healthcare being taken away like this,” he said.

King says this is not a time to have “politics as usual” if it leads to a loss of healthcare, referring to Smith’s comments.

“Make no mistake, that is what privatization means. It means we’ve seen this in every country that has a two-tier system, it means that people who have less money get access to less services,” he told CityNews.

“That is where Danielle Smith wants to take us. And that is a big problem. Absolutely. Everyone in this province is affected by this.”

Meanwhile, in a statement, the UCP called the protesters “radical activists” and also identified one of the activists as Aaron Doncaster, who they say is with the Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL).

They allege the NDP provided the location of the announcement on Twitter earlier in the day, adding the tweet has been deleted.

“Elections are about ideas, not physical intimidation and violence,” said Joseph Schow, UCP candidate for Cardston-Siksika. “We call on the NDP and their union activists to ensure a safe and orderly campaign, so nobody gets hurt.”

The party says it is asking Elections Alberta to investigate if there is a relationship between the NDP and the AFL.

Soon after the incident, the Alberta NDP posted to social media, saying the actions were “unacceptable.”

Elections are about talking to voters.

What happened today during a press conference with Danielle Smith was unacceptable and we strongly condemn the actions taken by the protesters involved.

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— Alberta NDP (@albertaNDP) May 11, 2023

“What happened today during a press conference with Danielle Smith was unacceptable, and we strongly condemned the actions taken by the protesters involved,” the statement reads.

“Albertans deserve a campaign focused on the important issues facing the future of our province.”

-With files from Jillian Code