The funding of post-secondary education, Senate reform, health care, and the oil and gas industry were up for discussion at Red Deer College on Tuesday as students were visited by politicians from both sides of the political spectrum.
Provincial Liberal Leader David Swann spoke to RDC students in the morning and Wildrose Alliance Leader Danielle Smith talked to them in the afternoon at Margaret Parsons Theatre at RDC after being invited to campus by RDC’s Political Science Society.
Swann spoke about post-secondary education and the barriers for students related to the cost of tuition, fees and the cost of living.
“The fundamental difference between the Liberal and Conservative approach is that we see (education) as an investment,” Swann said. “We want to see students have access to a quality education with a minimum debt load on students.”
He said it will be up to Albertans to decide, but he could see the province headed for a Liberal minority government if the vote is split between the two right-wing parties in the province.
Swann also spoke to Lindsay Thurber Comprehensive High School social studies students in the afternoon, answering questions on health care, the environment, and the future of oil and gas development.
Smith talked about the importance of health-care decisions being made locally with regional boards, rather than being bogged down in layer upon layer of middle management.
She spoke about senators needing to be elected to represent the interests of the province and she talked about Alberta oilsands getting a bad rap, when many other places on the planet have stripmining and tailings ponds.
She said there is no method of developing resources that doesn’t have an impact on the land, air and water quality.
Smith said the province is on the cusp of some big changes in politics.
“I think all of the political parties are going to do better in the next election except the current government,” Smith said. “They had 72 seats after the last election and there is absolutely no way Albertans are going to give them the opportunity to have that many seats again. I think we’ve seen what happens when that occurs. We’ve seen a government that gets arrogant, it gets out of touch, it gets a sense of entitlement and I think they’re going to be punished in the next election.”
Steven Kwasny, president of the Students’ Association of Red Deer College, said he was happy to see both politicians drop by the college to talk to students.
“The 18 to 25 age is the lowest voting demographic out there,” Kwasny said. “Students tend to be very apathetic when it comes to politics and so to get different politicians with different viewpoints in the door, it starts to broaden horizons and it gets people a little more interested in getting involved.”
sobrien@www.reddeeradvocate.com