Longtime provincial Conservative supporter and former MP Myron Thompson will offer his political experience to the fledgling Wildrose Alliance.
Frustrated by what he sees as out-of-control bureaucracy and an embedded political culture unwilling to change, Thompson has joined Wildrose’s Rocky Mountain House Constituency Association as a director-at-large.
“We’ve got too big a government, we’ve got a lot of bureaucracy, we’ve got a lot of things that need to be changed and the present government doesn’t seem to be interested in those kinds of changes,” he said on Thursday.
“I am interested in it and the Wildrose Alliance appears to have the same attitude.”
Thompson said he’s not the only one who feels the Conservatives have lost their way, citing the two MLAs who crossed the floor to join the Wildrose Alliance a few months ago.
“I know that there would be more who are certainly contemplating it but they would like to see changes made within the party.”
Thompson said while he will be helping the party that hopes to unseat MLA and former cabinet minister Ty Lund, he doesn’t blame him for his party’s troubles and he hasn’t heard from Lund’s camp.
“Ty and I are good friends and I have always admired Ty. I think Ty has done an excellent job for this riding.
“The system is set up where the circle of cabinet are the ones who make the big decisions and the backbenchers’ voices are very small.”
While Thompson would like to see change, the 74-year-old is not considering taking a run for the seat.
“I’m just getting too old to play these games much longer.”
Lund, who has represented the riding since 1989, was philosophical about Thompson’s shift in allegiance.
“It’s a free and democratic country. If people aren’t happy and feel they can do better in some other place and in some other way then they can go and do whatever they can,” he said.
The two politicians have been friendly for many years and he was not taking Thompson’s support for the Alliance personally. He pointed out the party is an offspring of the Reform Party, of which Thompson was a member before it merged with the federal Conservatives.
Lund believes Thompson may also be feeling frustrated with the government because of the difficulty in lining up funding for Save our Sundre’s efforts to tackle flooding problems along the Red Deer River. Thompson is a leader of that effort.
The Wildrose Alliance has been busy organizing in Central Alberta. Last week, a full board was elected for the party in the Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills riding.
pcowley@www.reddeeradvocate.com